Spun Roundels

I recently restored two windows made with spun roundels that adorned a beautiful early twentieth century sideboard. With the passing of time, the two spun roundels stained glass panels were in poor condition. Some of the solder joints had sagged and the windows were bent which had caused some of the glass in the border to break.

The stained glass windows were gently straightened, a few pieces of the glass in the border were replaced, some repairs were made to the solder joints, and after carefully re-cementing and polishing, the window was ready to be returned its rightful home in the sideboard, for many years to come.

Stained glass windows with spun roundel rollers are found predominantly throughout Europe, and this style of stained glass windows is very old. It was invented before the advent of industrial glass when mouth blown glass came in pieces that were not big enough to fill large windows.
The spun roundels are also called “bullseyes” and they are hand-made. Many people think they are produced by blowing the glass but this is not true. They were actually created by expert craftsmen by molding the molten glass. The glass was not blown at all.

In the video below, produced by the company Kokomo Manufacturers of Glass, the process of making spun roundels is explained.