Mirrors between history and modernity
The history of mirrors is fascinating and represents a succession of cultural and symbolic developments that have occurred over time. Mirrors, as we know them today, are the result of a long process.
The concept of the mirror originated with humanity and was interpreted as a divine sign or something "magical." The image of a man reflected in water recurs as early as Greek myths. Like Narcissus, who, upon discovering his own face in the water, ended up falling in love with himself and dying as divine punishment.
The first forms of mirrors can be found in ancient Egypt, where beauty and body care played a fundamental role.
The ancients considered mirrors symbols of regeneration and life. They generally made them with bronze metal discs, but they also used copper and silver. To these discs they added a small handle shaped like a column, a female figure, or a deity.
Mirrors between history and modernity
- From birth to the Renaissance
Mirrors remained small objects, often housed in cases made of wood, ivory, or precious metals. However, it was the artisans of Murano, around 1370, who created mirrors that resemble the ones we see today.
It was a Venetian master glassmaker, Vincenzo Redor, who patented a process for smoothing and polishing sheets of glass in 1540, which allowed him to obtain mirrors with flat, regular surfaces.
While the Venetian masters' production techniques were based on glassblowing, the French artisans specialized in the casting technique; this process involved pouring molten glass into molds with perfectly smooth surfaces and rolling it with special rollers, thus achieving a perfect consistency.
Towards the end of the seventeenth century, French manufacturers managed to prevail over those of Murano with a new production of large, single-piece mirrors surrounded by gilded wooden frames. Elegant mirrors
In the Baroque period, the use of mirrors as decoration of rooms was strengthened; the mirrors were gilded and decorated with carvings featuring rosette and leaf motifs and elegant scrolls. Late Baroque Mirror
In vogue in the nineteenth century was a mirror model called the "Psyche," a swinging mirror supported by two lateral supports that tilts back and forth. The Psyche, in its function as a mirror, seems to invite us to look within, a sort of self-conducted and metaphorical psychoanalysis. Psyche
- Nowadays
The mirror continues to be one of the most popular elements due to its purpose and its decorative power.
In fact, introduced into a room it can expand the light and spaces creating beautiful optical illusions. Mirrors
If you want to know the history of our company, visit the website dedicated to it: The story of Giuseppe Merlin
