Techniques

Lampworked Pansy on Filigree Ground with millefiori canes Saint Louis, circa 1845-55

Paperweightmaking: Techniques Used in Weights in the Barker Collection

Although the first paperweights did not appear until the mid-1840s, nearly all of the techniques required for their construction were in existence much earlier. It remained only for the glass artisan to draw upon his reservoir of skills to create a paperweight. Some of these techniques go back thousands of years. The Morton D. Barker Collection contains paperweights that incorporate the major techniques of sulphide, millefiori, and lampwork. Other subsidiary techniques were combined with the three major ones to create backgrounds and special effects.