Salviati & Co. Murano, Venice, ca. 1935

Salviati & Co. Murano, Venice, ca. 1935.
"Geisha", Art Deco period.
Pressed and frosted glass.
Some chipping on the base.
Measurements: 36 cm (height); 9.5 cm (largest diameter).
Geisha, made in transparent pressed glass decorated in red and orange tones, following the lines of the purest Art Deco style. For its technical characteristics we can attribute it to a famous Murano master glassmaker of the time.
Antonio Salviati (Vicenza, 1816-1890) was an Italian lawyer and businessman, founder of a top class Venetian glass factory, responsible for the revival of the Venetian glass industry in the 19th century.
A lawyer by profession, in 1866 they formed a partnership with Austen Henry Layard, the archaeologist who discovered Nineveh, with whom they formed the company Società Salviati e Compagni, based in Venice.
The Salviati company won several important commissions, such as the mosaics for the back of the high altar in Westminster Abbey (1867), the ceiling of the Albert Memorial Chapel in Windsor Castle and the Palatine Chapel in Aachen (1870-1875).
In 1876 he separated from his English partners and founded a new company which, in addition to mosaics, produced ornamental and table glass in a high quality Renaissance style. In the 1870s he also produced pieces in imitation of ancient Roman glass. His company took part in all the universal exhibitions at the end of the 19th century.