Mouth blowing
The melting furnace is operated for 24 hours.
The inside of the crucible is a muddy glass of 1400 ° C.
The material of the glass is quartz sand whose main component is silicic acid (SiO2) called silica sand.The silica sand is heated to 1400 ° C in the "crucible" in the melting furnace, and it is in a state of muddy.Those are glass seeds.Glass seeds will solidify as it cools, so the melting furnace has no 24-hour break.
Roll the glass seeds onto a well heated metal blowing rod, breathe in from the other end of the blowing rod while applying heat to prevent it from cooling down.
Mouth blowing is a technique that allows you to draw shapes and decorations freely and maximize the originality of artists and craftsmen.
Fighting time with glass production is drifting a momentary
There is a feeling of strained tension.
A lump of glass that was first wrapped around the blowing rod is called a lower ball, and it is possible to make a big work by winding the glass seed twice or three times on this lower ball.
A tool like an iron bowl to arrange the shape of the glass wrapped around the blowing rod is what is called "Lin".
Wrap the glass seeds, breathe in from the blowing rod, shape it, wrap it around･･･. Because the material being treated is unstable at high temperature, a sense of urgency not allowed for a momentary carelessness is drifting throughout the workshop.
The moment of blowing soul into glass
The Photo opportunity is instantaneous.
It is a "Main blow" to blow the blowing rod and inflate the lower ball greatly while adjusting the shape of the lower ball with "paper Lin" made by folding newspaper.Since glass is still softer at this stage, the work continues while always turning the blowing rod.
It is this picture that managed to capture a photo oppotunity to deliver the moment of main blow to the photograph.
There is no waste in the flowing movement of craftsmen, it is the moment when I realized that glass making is really a fight against time.
【Movie】 - Installation of Ponte -
It is the sleight of hand of the two craftsmen who fit perfectly.
It is a scene where a mass of glass called "Ponte" is attached with Ponte rod on the side opposite to the blowing rod.Ponte stands for "bridge" in Italian.I feel like bridging the glass.
The work of cutting the base of the blowing rod many times is preparation for separating the product from the blowing rod, which is called line insertion.To hit the air is to cool down and solidify that part.
Again there was no waste in the movements of the craftsmen, the breath of their two suited perfectly.
Only 15 minutes until the shape of the dish is formed!
It gradually cooled overnight and finally completed.
When the glass again came out of the kettle, it was in the shape of a dish in the blink of an eye.Air bubbles are confined in the dish with a splendid pattern in the dish, and it has brought about an unspeakable handmade taste.
After this the dishes are slowly cooled in the cooler overnight.What kind of nice dish will be on this dish?
Flat facet
What is flat facet?
It is a technology to flat the surface of the glass clean.
In this page, we will introduce the manufacturing method called "Flat facet" even among the Edo Glass that is designated as a traditional Japanese craft item.
Glass products made by techniques such as blowing and pushing are sent to a processing center located mainly in Koto Ward and Sumida Ward where various processing is given.
In the blown glass, a part (Ponte) rising at the nodal point between the blowing rod and the glass seed will be formed.What is used to flatten Ponte using a polishing machine is a flat surface processing technology for a flat facet.
In the industry, flat facet craftsmen are called "Hiraya",it seems that everyone knows familiar Edo Kiriko craftworker as "Kirikoya".
Polishing machines aligned narrowly
こThere is a surprising trick here.
In the nostalgic machining center in Kiyosumi Shirakawa in Koto Ward, old-fashioned machines were lined with narrowing.
This polishing machine that polishes the glass is a very valuable machine which is now only here if it searches throughout Japan.And its amazing gimmick is here (next page).
There are four stages of polishing.
What to use in the final process is ･･･.
Glass products are gradually polished with traditional polishing machines.The first stage is a coarse metal polishing machine.The second stage is a metal finishing machine a little finer.The third stage is a fine grindstone.And what is the final fourth stage!
The identity of the polishing machine is a paulownia tree!
Cut the glass with wood?
What is used in the final process is a paulownia tree.A paulownia tree with soft contact with glass and moderate hardness is ideal for polishing glass.Using the cerium powder as an abrasive, apply the glass product to a polishing machine rotating at high speed, and polish the glass surface shiny while melting the surface of the glass little by little.
Then it is the rock glass mentioned above.
There is also a product designed for various patterns by cutting the "dressing glass" with a polishing machine like the picture on the right for the flat facet technique.
It is the same with Edo Kiriko to cover transparent glass with ultrathin red or indigo colored glass and scrape its surface to create patterns,on the other hand, since flat facet is shaved with a surface, not a line, it is characterized by a rather soft looking appearance.