Size matters! And I’d never seen one this small before.
Orrefors’ legendary Ravenna range is immediately recognisable from the geometric, grid-like formation of small decorated squares on a blue (sometimes red) body. Typical of mid-century modern Scandinavian design, the forms are rounded and organic.
It was designed in 1948 by the hugely talented designer Sven Palmqvist (1906-84), and was named after the amazing mosaics in the Italian city of Ravenna created by Roman, Ostrogoth and Byzantine artists.
The production process is deceptively complex. A colourless glass slab was covered with a layer of coloured glass and annealed. Once cold, it was covered with a layer of bitumen resist in a geometric pattern that recalled mosaics. The slab was then sandblasted creating square or rectangular ‘pockets’ and grooves, which were then filled with coloured glass powder. The slab was then reheated, cased with colourless glass and formed into its final shape. This combination of hot and cold working techniques is highly unusual and the visual effects are stunning.
Although the range was produced from 1948-89, each and every single piece was unique due to the production process. True art glass, I feel.
I spotted this ‘sleeping’ in a large antiques centre and couldn’t resist – not only because of the price tag, but also because of the diminutive size – a mere 8.5cm square, and 5.5cm highest. I’ve never seen a miniature Ravenna before! All the work involved led to a hefty price tag for the range (back then, and today) so why go to all that effort to make something in miniature that would still have to have a comparatively high price tag, certainly compared to their other, simpler ranges? I can’t believe many of these miniatures sold, priced as they would have been. The entire range is scarce and highly-prized, with normal sized, larger examples selling for anything from £300-£3,500 or so today, depending on date, size, shape and style – and where and how it’s being sold.
Ravenna is fully signed on the base, and mine is no exception. A piece can be dated to a period or year from the serial number, depending on its style. My miniature is numbered 5584, indicating it was made in 1973 – thus making it a little older than me!
I could never afford a standard sized piece of Ravenna, so I was delighted to part with £38 (no, I didn’t negotiate!) to add it to my collection.
