The Glassblower

My dad took me to visit Mr. Donatello, a famous glassblower. He lived in a small house in the country. Next to the house was his workshop. That’s where he blew glass.(Pritchard, E. (2014).

“Hello”, said Mr. Donatello. “Welcome to my workshop. Let me show you around.” There were glass objects everywhere: glasses, vases, pitchers, and bowls. Slowly and carefully, we moved toward the glassware. I moved more slowly than my dad and Mr. Donatello. I was afraid I might fall and break the delicate objects.(Pritchard, E. (2014).

“Glassblowing was invented by the Romans in the first century BC,” Mr. Donatello explained. “For centuries, glassblowers have been blowing glass to make objects that hold water. My dad was a glassblower. When I was growing up, he taught me to blow glass. Let me show you how I make these beautiful things.”( Pritchard, E. (2014).

Mr. Donatello walked slowly toward the furnace. He placed a pair of protective plastic glasses over his eyeglasses. Then very carefully, he extended the blowpipe into the furnace and pulled out a ball of molten glass.

First, he rolled the molten glass ball on a steel table. “This is to shape the glass,” he explained. “I’m going to make a beautiful bowl.”( Pritchard, E. (2014).

Then he used metal tools to help him get the ball into the shape he wanted. Finally, he began to blow into the blowpipe. “ I have to work very quickly,” he said, “before the glass gets hard.”

Mr. Donatello worked more quickly than I’ve even seen someone work. And in just a short time, he made a beautiful glass bowl.( Pritchard, E. (2014).

 

 

references:

Pritchard, E. (2014). Oxford discover. Oxford: Oxford University Press.