Murano

At the end of the 13th century the Venetian Republic concentrated much of its glass production on Murano. Fire risk in a city with many timber structures was a practical reason, while concentrating the craft also made valuable technical knowledge easier to control.

The island then developed a society deeply tied to furnaces, master glassmakers, workshops and international trade, producing innovations from Renaissance crystal and filigree to 20th-century and contemporary design.

Murano is made up of smaller islands linked by bridges and crossed by canals. Along Fondamenta dei Vetrai, Rio dei Vetrai and Murano’s Grand Canal, industrial, residential and religious landscapes constantly overlap.

Look beyond shop windows: furnace courtyards, workshop façades, small bridges and the Basilica of Santi Maria e Donato reveal an island with its own history, distinct from central Venice.

A live demonstration can be fascinating, especially if you have never seen glass worked at high temperature. Choose visits that explain techniques and stages of production rather than turning the experience into a quick route to the showroom.

If you buy something, ask about origin and workmanship. Murano is both a place and a production tradition: an authentic object should come with a story, not just colour.