Edo Kiriko Japanese Whiskey Glasses

EDO KIRIKO 江戸切子

Edo Kiriko is the cut-glass craft that grew up in Edo-period Tokyo. An Edo Kiriko whiskey glass is worked by hand against a spinning wheel, one piece at a time — never pressed or moulded — so the facets break a pour of whisky into dozens of small bright planes. That hand-cutting is what separates a Japanese whiskey glass of this kind from pressed glassware. This collection of Edo Kiriko whiskey glasses runs from traditional patterns like chrysanthemum, hemp leaf and sunburst through coloured overlays to clear lead-free crystal, and includes a few hand-cut Bohemian pieces alongside the Japanese work. Every glass arrives in its own wooden gift box, with free tracked shipping and 30 days to change your mind.

Edo Kiriko cut glass is made by laying coloured glass over a clear body and grinding the pattern back through it, which is why a coloured Edo Kiriko glass shows two tones at once — colour at the rim, clear where the wheel has cut deepest. The Edo Kiriko glasses in this collection are cut for whisky, though the same Edo Kiriko glassware tradition runs through sake cups and tumblers as well.