A little history quoted from the glasriket magazine.
History// The end of the 19th century was the time when many new glassworks in Smaland fired up their furnaces for the first time. With the large wooded areas, the abundance of lakes as well as streams and rivers that never ran dry, conditions were optimal. The forest contributed wood for the glass furnaces, the lakes sand that was transformed into glass and water powder needed to operate the glass-cutting works.
Demand for glass products increased: pharmacies needed jars of various sizes, milk was poured into bottles and buildings were supplied with window glass. At the same time a skilled labour force stood at the ready for jobs because many ironworks had been closed down.
In 1919 artist Simon Gate arrived at Orrefors and became a pioneer of glass design. Many maintain that it was precisely the collaboration between glass designers and the skilled glassblowers and craftsmen that lies behind the success of Smaland glassworks.
