Saint-Louis Botticelli Vase

The Saint-Louis Botticelli Vase is decorated using the millefiori technique, one of the most ancient and demanding methods in glassmaking. Individually colored glass rods — murrine — are prepared, bundled, drawn, and sliced into cross-sections that reveal a patterned face; these are then applied to the blown crystal surface alongside finely cut glass leaves to create a covering of colorful crystal blossoms. The effect is simultaneously delicate and jewel-like, a surface that rewards close inspection and catches light differently from every angle. The Botticelli Vase is a compact, rounded form that works as a standalone accent piece on a shelf, console, or table.

The millefiori technique is among the most exacting in the Saint-Louis repertoire, requiring the preparation of individual colored glass rods, their arrangement into composite patterns, and the careful fusion and application of the resulting murrine onto the blown crystal surface — a multi-stage process combining hot-shop and cold-shop skills. Saint-Louis is one of very few houses in the world with the mastery to execute this technique at this level of precision and fineness.

The Botticelli collection takes its name and inspiration from the Italian Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli, whose luminous floral compositions are echoed in the millefiori patterns that cover each piece. Saint-Louis conceived Botticelli as a tribute to the masters of craft whose legacy resonates across centuries — a fitting name for a collection that revives one of glassmaking’s oldest and most demanding techniques. Established in 1586, Saint-Louis stands as Europe’s oldest crystal manufacturer, holding the title of Royal Cristallerie since 1781.