Footed Bowl (Coppa)

The brilliant brownish-red color and translucent body of this footed bowl imitate the semiprecious stone chalcedony. Calcedonioor 'chalcedony' glass was invented on the Venetian island of Murano in the late 1400s. Its marbled effect was achieved by mingling different metallic oxides into the glass mixture before gathering the hot glass to shape the object.

Natural phenomena such as beautifully colored and veined hardstones fascinated Renaissance collectors. When polished, carved, and set with gold mounts, stones such as agate, jade, and topaz became the highlights of collectors' curiosity cabinets. Venetian glassmakers were quick to catch up with this fashion; by 1500 one contemporary observer noted that "they began to turn the materials into various colors and numberless forms... there is no kind of precious stone that cannot be imitated by the industry of the glass workers, a sweet contest of nature and of man."