This beautiful amethyst-tinted serving bottle is made from a type of glass developed during the 1670s that contained a high percentage of lead.
This so-called ‘lead-glass’ or ‘crystal’ was much heavier, less fragile and more brilliant than that produced previously in either England or Europe.
Jan 22, 2026 08:00George Ravenscroft (1618-81), a glass merchant, was the first to obtain a patent to produce lead-glass in England from 1674.
The pincered decoration of lozenges on the body is known as 'nipt diamond waies', a type of decoration with Venetian origins.
This is not surprising as workers from Murano were employed in Ravenscroft's glass-house at the Savoy, London.
See it on display in Gallery 48 on Level 2.
💜 Purple decanter bottle 1671–1700. Glass, 19cm height. WA1957.24.2.1
