pontil
/ˈpɒntɪl
/(also punty /ˈpʌnti/)
noun
(In glass-making) an iron rod used to hold or shape soft glass.After the glass has been shaped, the glass object is broken off from the pontil iron, leaving a scar to the object's base....
- If free blown, the bulbous glass is attached to a metal rod, called a pontil, for further shaping after reheating in the furnace.
- It worked on the same principle, but the molten glass on the end of the pontil iron was impressed with a crisscross pattern, using the glassmaker's pincers.
Origin
Mid 19th century: from French, apparently from Italian pontello 'small point', diminutive of punto.