The reputation of the Murano Workshop as the best glass workshop in the country had never diminished. The Yurinova family, one of the empire’s most prestigious and well-financed families, bought it. They have developed new and novel products to be presented to the Emperor and have been looking for artisans to employ on favorable terms.
In the imperial capital’s workshops, hired artisans were not always treated well. This was because it is common for artisans to own their own workshop and become masters once they have acquired a certain level of skill, so that even if they become apprentices to other craftsmen, these artisans still feel that they are in the position of being allowed to learn their skills.
Therefore, the conditions offered by Ekaterina were highly coveted by the hired craftsmen. The more they worked, the more they were paid. Also, they would not be worked against their will. There was compensation in case of injury, and the conditions were clearly stated in the contract and there was protection against contract breaches.
It was worth the gamble, even if they had not yet made a serious move. That’s what many craftsmen thought.
But there was a strange offer in the mix.
“Are you Toma Egor, the lens maker?”
“Yes, the workshop where I was working went out of business. That was when he heard about you and asked for your help. I know I am not from the same field as them, but I am good at devising various ways of building things and making things work. Could you please hire me somehow?”
Indeed, he was a craftsman who made lenses for eyeglasses. Although there may be a connection with glass, as he stated, it was a different field.
However, when Ekaterina received the report by a letter from Rev, she immediately wrote back a reply. She had wanted to meet the lens-maker at all costs.
There was a reason why she had been concerned about the glass pen since she decided to make it her business. In her previous life, the heyday of the glass pen was very short-lived.
As a mere writing instrument, something more useful will eventually emerge. Something like a ballpoint pen or fountain pen.
In a world where only quill pens existed, development of a low-cost alternative would make it possible to become the most popular writing instrument once it was developed. However, the more the market share expands in this manner, the greater the fall will be when it is eclipsed by something else. The impact of such a collapse could endanger the workshop.
Although establishing the workshop as a high-end writing instrument would be more advantageous at the moment than in her previous life, it would also be much better to continue to make glasses like tableware, they would be able to diversify the risk. However, there were also plenty of other types of glasses they could develop.
One such product, according to her knowledge from her previous life, is a type of glass manufacturer that has remained a growing company even in Japan of the 21st century.
Those are Lens Makers.
Lenses were an essential element in optical equipment, medical equipment, and other fields expected to experience growth even in the 21st century. If Murano Workshop could position itself as a precision/specialty instrument maker now, it might survive for another hundred years. Even if glass pens fall from grace, the artisans may preserve their jobs.
“The reason I asked you to visit us is that there is something I would like you to make with the lenses. I wonder if you are familiar with microscopes.”
“Microscope…I know the name, but I’ve never actually seen one.”
Microscopes do exist in this world. However, they are very primitive and have only a magnification factor of about the same, making them appear larger than a magnifying glass. The Yurinova family owns a few, but they were purchased for Great Uncle Isaac by Grandfather Sergei for his research.
