Customer Reviews

Glassmakers: An Odyssey of the Jews : The First Three Thousand Years

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

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This appears to be a very well researched book. But, as they say, appearances can be deceiving.

Throughout the book Mr. Kurinsky passes off numerous cases of his speculative theories about ancient glassmaking as absolute facts, rather than as the theories they actually are. In addition to this he apparently has very little idea about how glass is actually made, in spite of the fact that he claims absolute knowledge of why it could and could not have been made in various areas at various times in various ways. His description of the prerequisites for glassmaking on pages 36 - 42 is so far off the mark as to be almost laughable, if it were not for the fact that many uninformed readers may actually believe it. Knowing how wrong this description is makes me wonder how many other things in the book are equally incorrect. (I make glass for a living so I have some firsthand knowledge about this. Yes, that's making glass itself from the raw materials, as well as making things out of that glass.)

This book has some interesting theories and speculation about the origins of glassmakimg. Unfortunately, Mr. Kurinsky's lack of objectivity, and the "facts" he states that are flat out wrong, taint all the rest of the information contained within.

I read this book from beginning to end, and enjoyed it. But it left me wishing I could find a more thoroughly documented, and more objective, work on the same subject. Even though I wanted to believe the author had a solid basis for his theme that he had discovered the true history of glassmaking before the Middle Ages, I didn't find his sources and his reasoning to be convincing.

I had the same feeling when I had finished this book as I had when I finished John J. Robinson's speculative history that attempts to connect the origins of Freemasonry with the suppression of the Knights Templars in the early 1300s. It was an inspiring and attractive tale, but I couldn't go along with several of the key leaps of interpretation that were essential to its central theme. Too much speculation and too little solid evidence.

There are many reasons to recommend this work. I know of no other book that attempts to address some rather obvious problems in history. Whether or not all of these ideas are vindicated is to be determined, but I am delighted with the care and intelligence that this book demonstrates. Thank you.

Michael Wahrman

Kurinsky's research and fieldwork have made an enormous impact on my interpretation of the large quantities of glass I have excavated on early Mediterranean shipwrecks, from the Bronze Age through Medieval times. One cannot help but be caught up in the passion he brings to his work. The Glassmakers is beautifully written -- and perhaps the best presentation of the Jewish experience I've read.

Mr. Kurinsky did a great job of explaining and rationalizing the transient history of the Jews into what modern archaeological digs are finding.
I found this book to be informative yet balanced enough to allow the reader to understand what is a fact and what is speculation.