The brief history of glass windows dates back as far as 5000 BC, when, by accident, Phoenician stone merchants observed that when limestone and sand were heated together to the melting point, the mixture resulted in a hard, shiny substance. This is now called soda glass. By 3500 BC, artisans in Egypt were crafting opaque beads from similar material.
An early instruction manual on how to make the glassy substance dating to 650 BC was found in an Assyrian library. The Romans began using it in buildings in AD 100. The first rudimentary windows started appearing in prestigious buildings and in classy villas in Pompeii and Herculaneum.
In Europe, glass making had something of a paradigm shift when craftsmen learned how to use potash from burnt trees as a starting material, as opposed to limestone and silica. During the Middle Ages, they were joining coloured window panes with strips of lead. At the beginning, only prestigious buildings like churches and palaces were able to afford this treatment.
Although the material is hard, it is really a super-cooled liquid. This is why decades old window panes have a greater thickness at the bottom than they do at the top. The liquid has flowed downwards. Recovered from old houses, the material is sought after by craftsmen and hobbyists for lending character and texture to their work. Cutting the material is tricky and is best left in the hands of someone with lots of practice.
Glass makers became busier towards by the conclusion of the Industrial Revolution in Germany. Engineer Friedrich Siemens developed the tank furnace. This made it easier to manufacture windows on a larger scale.
A Belgian man by the name of Foucault was the first to draw a vertical sheet of the transparent material from a tank. By 1914, commercial production was fully feasible. The process of plate glass making continued to evolve until the end of the 1950s. By that time, the window as we know it was in full commercial production.
The Pilkington process, in which molten glassy material at a temperature of 1000 degrees Centigrade is floated on a layer of molten tin, was invented by Sir Alastair Pilkington in the 1950s. The Pilkington company started out as a family concern in 1826 and grew to become one of the world's leading manufacturers by the beginning of the 21st Century. Toughened and laminated materials have since been developed. With larger and larger panes becoming possible to manufacture, it is clear that the brief history of glass windows continues to be written.
An early instruction manual on how to make the glassy substance dating to 650 BC was found in an Assyrian library. The Romans began using it in buildings in AD 100. The first rudimentary windows started appearing in prestigious buildings and in classy villas in Pompeii and Herculaneum.
In Europe, glass making had something of a paradigm shift when craftsmen learned how to use potash from burnt trees as a starting material, as opposed to limestone and silica. During the Middle Ages, they were joining coloured window panes with strips of lead. At the beginning, only prestigious buildings like churches and palaces were able to afford this treatment.
Although the material is hard, it is really a super-cooled liquid. This is why decades old window panes have a greater thickness at the bottom than they do at the top. The liquid has flowed downwards. Recovered from old houses, the material is sought after by craftsmen and hobbyists for lending character and texture to their work. Cutting the material is tricky and is best left in the hands of someone with lots of practice.
Glass makers became busier towards by the conclusion of the Industrial Revolution in Germany. Engineer Friedrich Siemens developed the tank furnace. This made it easier to manufacture windows on a larger scale.
A Belgian man by the name of Foucault was the first to draw a vertical sheet of the transparent material from a tank. By 1914, commercial production was fully feasible. The process of plate glass making continued to evolve until the end of the 1950s. By that time, the window as we know it was in full commercial production.
The Pilkington process, in which molten glassy material at a temperature of 1000 degrees Centigrade is floated on a layer of molten tin, was invented by Sir Alastair Pilkington in the 1950s. The Pilkington company started out as a family concern in 1826 and grew to become one of the world's leading manufacturers by the beginning of the 21st Century. Toughened and laminated materials have since been developed. With larger and larger panes becoming possible to manufacture, it is clear that the brief history of glass windows continues to be written.
About the Author:
Looking at the brief history for glass windows is interesting. With that thought in mind, you need to look into sash window refurbishment and sash window renovation now.
0 comments:
Post a Comment