(1) The process whereby glass becomes partly crystallized as it cools (usually too slowly) from the molten state; (2) the crystals formed by this process. Devitrification can also occur on the surface as a result of unsuccessful annealing or accidental heating to a high temperature. It is not caused by chemical reaction between glass and its environment, which is known as weathering.

A forming technique in which molten glass is poured or ladled into a mold of compacted sand. A rough-textured granular surface results where the glass comes into contact with the sand.

A substance, usually clay with a high silica content, capable of resisting high temperatures. Furnaces and pots are made from refractory materials.

The process of reheating a blank until it becomes soft and gradually flows under its own weight over or into a former mold and eventually assumes the shape of the mold. Soda-lime glass becomes soft at about 1110°F (600°C). Slumping is also known as sagging.

The generic name for a wide variety of techniques used to form glass in a mold.

(1) The process of founding or melting the batch; (2) heating pieces of glass in a kiln or furnace until they bond (see Casting and Kiln forming); (3) heating enameled glasses until the enamel bonds with the surface of the object.

The process of (1) heating the batch in order to fuse it into glass by exposing it to the required temperature in a crucible or pot, (2) reheating unfinished glassware while it is being worked, or (3) reheating glassware in a muffle to fuse enamel or gilding. The melting of the batch may require a temperature of about 2400°-2750°F (1300°-1500°C), whereas the muffle kiln may require a temperature of only about 950°- 1300°F (500°-700°C).

The most common form of silica used in making glass. It is collected from the seashore or, preferably, from deposits that have fewer impurities. For most present-day glassmaking, sand must have a low iron content. Before being used in a batch, it is thoroughly washed, heated to remove carbonaceous matter, and screened to obtain uniformly small grains.

A form used for shaping and/ or decorating molten glass. Some molds (e.g., dip molds) impart a pattern to the parison, which is then withdrawn, and blown and tooled to the desired shape and size; other molds (sometimes known as full-size molds) are used to give the object its final form, with or without decoration. Dip molds consist of a single part and are usually shaped like beakers. Full-size molds usually have two or more parts and can be opened to extract the object. Nowadays, most molds are made of metal, but stone, wood, plaster, and earthenware molds were used in the past and are still occasionally employed today.

The technique whereby glass is removed from the surface of an object by grinding it with rotating wheels made of stone, wood, and cork. The first stage of the process employs a stone wheel under a continuous stream of water. Later, wheels of fine-grained stone and wood, fed with various abrasives, are used to grind and polish the surface.

The process of fusing or shaping glass (usually in or over a mold) by heating it in a kiln.

An oven used to process a substance by burning, drying, or heating. In contemporary glassworking, kilns are used to fuse enamel and for kiln-forming processes such as slumping.