Faceted glass day 2022: the history and traditions of the holiday

An integral attribute of canteens, one of the symbols of the Soviet past and a faithful companion of rail travel – all this is about a faceted glass. Perhaps there is no other dish in Our Country that would contain so many stories and meanings. Only a samovar can compete with him, but he has not yet acquired his own holiday. We are talking about Faceted Glass Day in Our Country in 2022.

When is Faceted Glass Day in 2022?

The celebration is mostly joking, but the joke is a tribute to the legendary container. Faceted glass day has a fixed date: on September 11, in 2022 it will be celebrated throughout Our Country.

history of the holiday

In the minds of most, a faceted glass is a thing from the USSR, but in fact the dishes are much older. When it was first released, historians find it difficult to say. A common legend says that it was during the time of Peter the Great, that is, at the turn of the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries.

The first emperor was presented with wormwood vodka in a faceted glass. The tincture was part of cuisine, but today we know it under the European name “absinthe”. The tasting was conducted by the masters of the imperial glass factory, which was located either in St. Petersburg or in Vladimir. According to another version, it was generally in Holland.

The head of state was regaled with bitter tincture from a faceted glass. He allegedly appreciated not only the drink, but also the shape of the dishes, which will be convenient during sea trips: stable, will not break.

However, after this episode, there is no mention of faceted glass in history until the middle of the XNUMXth century. Only since that time in Dyatkovo (Bryansk region), Urshel (Gus-Khrustalny district) and at the glass factory in Gus-Khrustalny began mass production of such dishes. It cost only half a penny, so everyone could afford to buy a faceted glass.

However, this is only a prelude to the history of the holiday. The date of September 11 is already associated with the Soviet period of our history. The case again was in Gus-Khrustalny at a glass factory. In 1943, mass pressing of faceted glass began there. Under Peter I, this method of production simply did not exist, the edges were made by hand.

The history of faceted glass is connected with the name of Vera Mukhina, the sculptor who created the monument “Worker and Collective Farm Girl”. If you are in the Crimean Feodosia in the museum created in honor of Mukhina, they will definitely tell you and prove with documents that the artist received an order from the Soviet government to invent dishes for the proletariat.

Holiday traditions

There are no special traditions for Faceted Glass Day in Our Country in 2022. Some kitchen supply stores use the celebration as an excuse to announce a sale. By a funny coincidence, September 11th is also the Day of Sobriety. Therefore, on the Day of the faceted glass, it is better to fill the vessel with fragrant tea.

Interesting facts about faceted glass

• A faceted glass has a volume of 50 to 350 ml, but most often 200 ml. The rim of the glass on top is called the “maruska belt”. If you pour before it, you get 167 ml. Hence the phrase “think for three”: three times 167 ml is almost half a liter.
• A classic glass has 16 sides. According to legend, this number is due to the fact that in the early years there were 16 republics in the USSR. But you can find variations from 12 to 20 faces.
• The strength of dishes is influenced by two facts: stiffeners and glass firing.
• The legendary culinary “Book of Tasty and Healthy Food” gives all recipes in glasses. Precisely faceted.
• In Soviet canteens, after the delivery of a fresh batch, glasses were additionally calcined in boiling water. It was believed that otherwise the dishes would quickly burst. In families, new glasses were also “boiled” in hot water. Before that, they made wishes. Whose glass is cracked – that dream will come true.
• You can learn more about the history of faceted glass, for example, in the Kuskovo Museum-Estate in Moscow. There is a department of ceramics and glass. In Gus-Khrustalny there is a museum of crystal. Maltsev, where they will also tell about the unique dishes.