Traditional Glassworks

Since the time of the Phoenicians fine quality beads have been produced in Turkey in primitive glass furnaces. In time eye motifs began to be used on these beads, resulting in the first charms against the evil eye. For thousands of years glass beads with eye motifs were used by the various civilisations that rose and fell in Turkey, and these charms spread to many other cultures beyond Anatolia. Traditional crystal charms produced by Paşabahçe are created by pouring layers of crystal glass in four different colours. Using a mandrel, molten glass is lifted up and poured onto a flat plate. A new colour is added before the lower layer has cooled, and this process is repeated for each new colour. Creation of these free form objects requires a team of four people to work in synchrony. Every charm produced by this method is unique.