Brokis
A platform to enliven and elevate Bohemian glassmaking
For more than 200 years, Janštejn Glassworks, situated in Bohemia’s picturesque Vysočina Region, has upheld a glassblowing tradition that dates to the end of the 17th century. Founded in 1809 near the village of Horní Dubenky, the factory and generations of tenacious craftspeople employed by it have enjoyed periods of prosperity, yet have also endured much hardship, with three devastating fires, two world wars, and nationalization among the greatest challenges.
Brokis is the brainchild of successful Czech entrepreneur and engineer Jan Rabell. In 2006, he founded the brand Brokis as a platform to enliven and elevate Bohemian glassmaking to new heights and preserve generations of knowledge and craftsmanship.
Nearly ten years prior, in 1997, he acquired the ailing Janštejn Glassworks, founded at the start of the 19th century approximately 140 kilometres southeast of Prague. Demand for traditional products had declined significantly, many of the glassmakers were growing old and leaving, and time-honoured technologies and techniques were at risk of being lost. Mr. Rabell’s vision was to restore the factory to its former prestige and ensure that the ages-old Bohemian glassmaking tradition endured into the 21st century.
Today, Janštejn Glassworks is the largest producer of specialty lighting glass in the Czech Republic.
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