History

 Verre Eglomise:  To pronounce it: "ver egg glo me say"

Verre Églomisé , from the French term meaning glass gilded, is a process in which the back side of glass is painted, then gilded with gold or metal leaf.  The name verre eglomise is derived from the 18th century French decorator and art dealer Jean-Baptiste Glomy (1711–1786). 

The technique derives from the pre-Roman era.   It has been revived at different periods in the history of glass.  A key period was in Italy during the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. Small panels of glass with designs formed by engraving were applied to reliquaries and portable altars.  The method used is described by Cennino Cennini.  The art was also seen in Holland and Spain during the 17th and 18th centuries and in France, England and the USA in the 18th century.  

Glomy’s technique was a relatively simple one of applying decorative designs in a combination of color and gilding, usually to glass picture frames. Over time it has come to be used to describe nearly any process involving back-painted and gilded glass, however elaborate.