14 CONTEXT 177 : SEPTEMBER 2023 KATIA PAPKOVSKAIA The history of glass in the UK and Ireland The texture, nature, patterns of imperfections and subtle hues of historic glass derive from the variety of techniques with which the material has been made since the 13th century. Where historic glass survives in old buildings, it is often an inseparable part of their character and history. Visually, the glass bends the light, transforming the interior and gently distorting the views out from the windows. Historically, the texture of the glass, the nature and patterns of its imperfections and subtle hues of colour tell the story of how and when the glass was made, while the size and quality of the panes can hint at the wealth and social status of the past owners. Between the 13th and mid-20th centuries, glass manufacture in Great Britain and Ireland was a complicated craft requiring the firing of precise quantities of materials in large furnaces under harsh conditions. Depending on the variations in the glassmaking technique over time, molten liquid glass was blown, spun, pulled, polished, ground and cut to make increasingly larger and more affordable window panes. The processes gradually improved to reduce the imperfections and achieve a consistent colour, texture and thickness, culminating in the fully mechanised manufacture of modern clear float glass on an industrial scale in the 1950s. Window tax Until the mid-1800s, glass and window taxes made glass an expensive commodity. In Britain, windows were taxed from 1696 to 1851, and glass was separately taxed from 1745 to 1845. Cylinder glass being blown in the workshop of Glashütte Lamberts, Germany (Photo: Glashütte Lamberts) The characteristic radiating ripples of crown glass in a window at Trinity College, Dublin (Photo: Graham Hickey) Window tax was levied in Ireland from 1799 to 1822, and glass from 1825 to 1845. Glass tax was calculated by glass weight and window tax by the number of windows in a property. In addition to the taxes, the Crown controlled
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