enamel

enamel. A smooth, glossy material made by fusing glass to a prepared surface, usually of metal, by means of intense heat. The term is also applied to any object made of, or decorated with, this material. Though easily fractured, enamel is otherwise extremely durable and gives great brilliance of colour, especially when used in translucent form against a ground of precious material. The colour can come from the use of coloured glass or from the application of colour to plain enamel. Enamel is thought to be of western Asiatic origin and was well known in the ancient Mediterranean world, the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans making extensive use of it in jewellery. In the Middle Ages—in both Byzantium and western Europe—enamels were much used for the decoration of various types of ecclesiastical art—book covers, reliquaries, Crucifixes, and so on—and they were sometimes used on a larger scale, as for example in Nicolas of Verdun's Klosterneuburg Altar, completed in 1181. Nicolas came from the Mosan region (in present-day Belgium), which in his time was the centre of the highest-quality enamelwork. Later in the Middle Ages the French city of Limoges became the best-known centre of production, catering for the mass market and making secular objects (caskets, rings, and so on) as well as religious ones. The great days of enamel were over by the end of the 16th century, although it continued to be used for jewellery and decorative work.

Enamel paints, as used on stained glass, were made from powdered glass mixed with various substances. Today the word ‘enamel’ is loosely used of any glossy protective covering such as durable paint or varnish applied to the surface of objects made from metal, wood, etc.