Castle Bran Vase

6402 Castle Bran Vase

Height: 12 3/4"
Volume: 21 cups

We offers you the unique opportunity to become the owner of one of these exquisite vases commemorating three of Transylvania’s most famous castles. Theses magnificent masterpieces are handmade and in a limited edition (just 100 of each will be created). Blending the refined craftsmanship of a world-renowned artist with an ever-challenging motif, these superb vases bring the mysterious and intriguing Transylvania sprit into your home.

Bran Castle

• Built between 1377-1382 by the Queen Mary of Romania, the Bran Castle was used as a military fortress and residence. (Item#6402) It is known as the one time residence of Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler), leader of Wallachia and Transilvania in the 1400s and known as “Count Dracula” in the western world.

Perched high on a rock in the midst of Transylvanian forest, Bran Castle, named after the nearby town, is one of Romania’s most famous attractions, thanks to its connections with Bram Stoker’s novel, ‘Dracula’. In his tale, Stoker cites the castle’s location a bit further north, but Bran Castle’s Gothic towers, winding corridors, and labyrinths of secret passages fit the image of the vampire’s home so perfectly that it has been dubbed Dracula’s Castle. Built between 1377 and 1382 as a palace and military fortress, it was once the residence of Queen Mary of Romania, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, whose heart is reputed to have been found hidden in the castle in a silver box. During the six centuries of its life, the Bran Castle changed its destination several times: at the beginning it was a fortress, after that a customs house and local administration office and later, in the first half of the 20-th century, a royal residence. This is why the castle’s architecture and functionality changed in several points during the rehabilitation and improvement works. Nowadays, visitors who dare enter the eerie chambers can see collections of furniture, weaponry and armor, and admire the well-preserved Gothic architecture.

The Legend of Dracula
In the eve of the XV-th century a Romanian prince called Vlad was sent by the emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg to rule in the state of Valachia situated south of Transylvania, between the Carpathian mountains and the As a sign of appreciation, the emperor gave Vlad a necklace with a dragon medallion. This dragon (Latin: draconis) became the emblem of the state of Valachia and Vlad was nicknamed Vlad Dracula. Vlad ruled Valachia for a decade and had a son whom he also called Vlad. When his son Vlad became the ruler of Valachia, he had to defend the south border against the Turks and the northern one against the Hungarian army; in the meantime, he also had to face his inside enemies. He reestablished the order in Valachia by judging and killing thieves, beggars, traitors, but also boyars and nobles in public executions, generally by impeling. His cruelty and ruthlessness made him famous and he was surnamed Vlad the Impeller, but he also used his father’s name, Dracula, which came perfectly in line with the meaning of its name in the Romanian language: Dracul or Satan. It was this Vlad that inspired Bran Stoker’s novel.

This unique glassware and stemware is meticulously crafted at the Cristiro factory in Bistrita, BN, Transylvania, Romania, and then directly imported to the U.S. Glass blowing is the art of creating an object from molten glass by blowing air into it utilizing a tube. The glass in the oven takes days to melt so the ovens are never turned off. The artisan collects the molten glass onto the tip of his blow rod, being careful to accumulate just the right amount for the piece to be blown. After the glass is cooled, other craftsman add the elements required for each design. One last firing ensures that the color will last for a very long time. This glassware in not dishwasher safe and should be cleaned by hand to maintain the luster and the unique characteristics of this fine glassware. The beauty and uniqueness of this glassware will be worth the effort.

The glassware we offer is lead free crystal. Each piece of mouth-blown and hand-decorated crystal is produced individually in the European country of Romania, in the old tradition of blowing glass. Crystal is a popular term for colorless 24% lead glass that has a high refractive index and consequently is particularly brilliant. Today, the word is often used to describe any fine glass tableware, even if it does not contain lead, as is the case here. Lead crystal has the transparency and brilliance to allow wine to show its best colors.

Each piece is mouth-blown and hand engraved. Quality Fine glassware, as with all hand crafted fine glassware each piece may have slight imperfections which celebrate the unique, one of a kind, feature of these collections. None of these pieces are exactly alike, however, they go through a rigorous quality control process insuring that only the highest quality product is imported to the USA.

All of our glassware is double boxed to help ensure that you receive these beautiful glasses in the most pristine condition possible. If for some reason there is some damage that occurs during shipping you can rest assured that we will back your purchase and have a replacement sent to you free of charge ASAP.