Friedrich family

Last updated

The Friedrich are the most ancient German-Bohemian glass-maker family.

Contents

Votive portrait of the Northern Bohemian Glassworks Master Martin Friedrich the Younger and his Family (about 1596). Glasmacherfamilie Familie Friedrich mit Kreuz 1596.jpg
Votive portrait of the Northern Bohemian Glassworks Master Martin Friedrich the Younger and his Family (about 1596).

History

From as early as 750 years ago, the shadowy picture of the oldest German-Bohemian glass-maker family Friedrich emerges, who contributed greatly towards the creation of the world-famous Bohemian glass (also called Bohemian Crystal ). In pre-Hussite times they produced amazing works of vitreous art near Daubitz, nowadays called Doubice. During the 16th and 17th centuries, as a result of the family’s development of their glass factory in Oberkreibitz, today Horní Chribská, Bohemian glass art enjoyed its first heyday.

The expansion of this glass-maker family over many European countries is unparalleled. Its hut master dynasties together with the Schierer von Walthaimb family made glass history in Bohemia, Silesia, Austria, Tyrol and Slovenia. Its glass-makers proved their artistic skills and technological experience in Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia, Bavaria, Styria, Slovakia, Croatia and so on. The well-known glass artist Friedrich Egermann also ranked among the family’s descendants as the natural historian and explorer of South America Thaddäus Haenke.

Bibliography

See also

Related Research Articles

Caspar David Friedrich German Romantic landscape painter (1774–1840)

Caspar David Friedrich was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation. He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscapes, which typically feature contemplative figures silhouetted against night skies, morning mists, barren trees or Gothic ruins. His primary interest was the contemplation of nature, and his often symbolic and anti-classical work seeks to convey a subjective, emotional response to the natural world. Friedrich's paintings characteristically set a human presence in diminished perspective amid expansive landscapes, reducing the figures to a scale that, according to the art historian Christopher John Murray, directs "the viewer's gaze towards their metaphysical dimension".

Sudetenland Historical German name for areas of Czechoslovakia which were inhabited by Sudeten Germans

The Sudetenland is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the border districts of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia since the Middle Ages. Sudetenland had been since the 9th century an integral part of the Czech state both geographically and politically.

Friedrich Schiller German poet, philosopher, historian and playwright (1759–1805)

Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friendship with the already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. They frequently discussed issues concerning aesthetics, and Schiller encouraged Goethe to finish works that he had left as sketches. This relationship and these discussions led to a period now referred to as Weimar Classicism. They also worked together on Xenien, a collection of short satirical poems in which both Schiller and Goethe challenge opponents of their philosophical vision.

Albert Lortzing German opera composer

Gustav Albert Lortzing was a German composer, librettist, actor and singer. He is considered to be the main representative of the German Spieloper, a form similar to the French opéra comique, which grew out of the Singspiel.

Bohemianism Practice of an unconventional lifestyle

Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people and with few permanent ties. It involves musical, artistic, literary, or spiritual pursuits. In this context, bohemians may be wanderers, adventurers, or vagabonds.

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld German painter (1794-1872)

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld was a German painter, chiefly of Biblical subjects. As a young man he associated with the painters of the Nazarene movement who revived the florid Renaissance style in religious art. He is remembered for his extensive Picture Bible, and his designs for stained glass windows in cathedrals.

Lands of the Bohemian Crown Incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods

The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were a number of incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods connected by feudal relations under the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of Bohemia, an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire according to the Golden Bull of 1356, the Margraviate of Moravia, the Duchies of Silesia, and the two Lusatias, known as the Margraviate of Upper Lusatia and the Margraviate of Lower Lusatia, as well as other territories throughout its history. This agglomeration of states nominally under the rule of the Bohemian kings was historically referred to simply as Bohemia. They are now sometimes referred to in scholarship as the Czech lands, a direct translation of the Czech abbreviated name.

Kingdom of Bohemia Monarchy in Central Europe (1198-1918), predecessor of modern Czech Republic

The Kingdom of Bohemia, sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czech Republic. It was an Imperial State in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Bohemian king was a prince-elector of the empire. The kings of Bohemia, besides the region of Bohemia proper itself, also ruled other lands belonging to the Bohemian Crown, which at various times included Moravia, Silesia, Lusatia, and parts of Saxony, Brandenburg, and Bavaria.

Sudeten Germans Ethnic Germans living in the Czech lands before 1945

German Bohemians, later known as Sudeten Germans, were ethnic Germans living in the Czech lands of the Bohemian Crown, which later became an integral part of Czechoslovakia. Before 1945, over three million German Bohemians inhabited about 23% of the population of the whole country and about 29.5% of the population of Bohemia and Moravia. Ethnic Germans migrated into the Kingdom of Bohemia, an electoral territory of the Holy Roman Empire, from the 11th century, mostly in the border regions of what was later called the "Sudetenland", which was named after the Sudeten Mountains.

Glass bead making

Glass bead making is among the oldest human arts, with the oldest known beads dating over 3,000 years. Glass beads have been dated back to at least Roman times. Perhaps the earliest glass-like beads were Egyptian faience beads, a form of clay bead with a self-forming vitreous coating. Glass beads are significant in archaeology because the presence of glass beads often indicate that there was trade and that the bead making technology was being spread. In addition, the composition of the glass beads could be analyzed and help archaeologists understand the sources of the beads.

Riedel (glass manufacturer) Austrian glassware maker founded in 1756

Riedel Crystal is a glassware manufacturer based in Kufstein, Austria, best known for its glassware designed to enhance different types of wines. According to Petr Novy, Chief curator Museum of Glass and Jewellery in Jablonec nad Nisou Czech Republic, Riedel is the oldest family owned and operated global crystal glass brand worldwide. Established in Bohemia in 1756, the company is managed by Georg Riedel and Maximilian Riedel.

Venetian glass Glassmaking tradition from Venice, Italy

Venetian glass is glassware made in Venice, typically on the island of Murano near the city. Traditionally it is made with a soda–lime "metal" and is typically elaborately decorated, with various "hot" glass-forming techniques, as well as gilding, enamel, or engraving. Production has been concentrated on the Venetian island of Murano since the 13th century. Today Murano is known for its art glass, but it has a long history of innovations in glassmaking in addition to its artistic fame—and was Europe's major center for luxury glass from the High Middle Ages to the Italian Renaissance. During the 15th century, Murano glassmakers created cristallo—which was almost transparent and considered the finest glass in the world. Murano glassmakers also developed a white-colored glass that looked like porcelain. They later became Europe's finest makers of mirrors.

Prince Felix of Schwarzenberg Austrian prince

Felix Ludwig Johann Friedrich, Prince of Schwarzenberg was a Bohemian nobleman and an Austrian statesman who restored the Austrian Empire as a European great power following the Revolutions of 1848. He served as Minister-President of the Austrian Empire and Foreign Minister of the Austrian Empire from 1848 to 1852.

Silesian architecture is the name given to the constructions made in Silesia throughout time, and those by Silesian architects worldwide. The name is also applied to buildings made within its geographical limits before the constitution of Silesia as a duchy or before this name was given to those territories, and largely depends on the historical moment. Due to historic, geographic and generational diversity, Silesian architecture has known a host of influences.

Bohemian glass

Bohemian glass, also referred to as Bohemia crystal, is glass produced in the regions of Bohemia and Silesia, now parts of the Czech Republic. It has a centuries long history of being internationally recognised for its high quality, craftsmanship, beauty and often innovative designs. Hand-cut, engraved, blown and painted decorative glassware ranging from champagne flutes to enormous chandeliers, ornaments, figurines and other glass items are among the best known Czech exports and immensely popular as tourist souvenirs. The Czech Republic is home to numerous glass studios and schools attended by local and foreign students.

Chřibská Town in Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic

Chřibská is a town in Děčín District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,300 inhabitants.

Engraved glass Type of decorated glass

Engraved glass is a type of decorated glass that involves shallowly engraving the surface of a glass object, either by holding it against a rotating wheel, or manipulating a "diamond point" in the style of an engraving burin. It is a subgroup of glass art, which refers to all artistic glass, much of it made by "hot" techniques such as moulding and blowing melting glass, and with other "cold" techniques such as glass etching which uses acidic, caustic, or abrasive substances to achieve artistic effects, and cut glass, which is cut with an abrasive wheel, but more deeply than in engraved glass, where the engraving normally only cuts deeply enough into the surface to leave a mark. Usually the engraved surface is left "frosted" so a difference is visible, while in cut glass the cut surface is polished to restore transparency. Some pieces may combine two or more techniques.

Silver overlay is an electroplated coating of silver on a non-conductive surface such as porcelain or glass. Most techniques used to create silver overlay involve the use of special flux which contains silver and turpentine oil. This is then painted on the glass ornament as a design. After the painting is complete, the entire ornament is fired under relatively low heat, it is then cleaned after being quenched and cooled, then it is placed in a solution of silver. A low voltage current is run through the solution and the silver binds in the design, creating a permanent fusion of the silver with the glass.

Enamelled glass Glass which has been decorated with vitreous enamel

Enamelled glass or painted glass is glass which has been decorated with vitreous enamel and then fired to fuse the glasses. It can produce brilliant and long-lasting colours, and be translucent or opaque. Unlike most methods of decorating glass, it allows painting using several colours, and along with glass engraving, has historically been the main technique used to create the full range of image types on glass.

Cut glass Glass with geometrical incised patterns

Cut glass or cut-glass is a technique and a style of decorating glass. For some time the style has often been produced by other techniques such as the use of moulding, but the original technique of cutting glass on an abrasive wheel is still used in luxury products. On glassware vessels, the style typically consists of furrowed faces at angles to each other in complicated patterns, while for lighting fixtures, the style consists of flat or curved facets on small hanging pieces, often all over. Historically, cut glass was shaped using grinding or drilling techniques applied as a secondary stage to a piece of glass made by conventional processes such as glassblowing. Today, the glass is often mostly or entirely shaped in the initial process by using a mould, or imitated in clear plastic. Traditional hand-cutting continues, but gives a much more expensive product.