At the beginning of the 18th century, Europeans began to favor heavily cut and engraved glass from England, Bohemia, and Germany, and interest in Venetian glass declined. Nevertheless, magnificent colorful glass chandeliers continued to be made on the island of Murano in the Venetian lagoon. When Renaissance art became popular again in the mid-19th century, so did the glass of Venice. The artist and entrepreneur Antonio Salviati (1816-1890) is largely responsible for this resurgence of Venetian glass. He started his career as a maker of mosaic glass, but quickly extended his business to include glass vessels. Beginning in 1862, his glass was exhibited at world's fairs. In 1866, he founded the Società Salviati e Compagni in Venice. This colorful glass chandelier is a masterful imitation of its 18th-century Venetian precursors. It pays homage to Giuseppe Briati (1686-1772), the greatest Venetian glass artist of his time.