What’s a “Hornaffe”?

According to Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s German dictionary, the “Hornaffe” is “eine art gebäck, in gestalt zweier aneinandergefügter hörner, anderswo in bretzelgestalt” [a kind of pastry, in the shape of two horns joined together, elsewhere in the shape of a bretzel], as well as a “triangulum, ein zwickel zwischen den fensterscheiben.” [triangulum, a gusset between the window panes] [1] The latter refers to the small glass triangles that fill the space between the round bullseyes in windows. As a glass product and as a Hessian-Thuringian pastry speciality, the “Hornaffe” is the inspiration for important allusions as well as for curious and spectacular findings. Here we present interesting and worthwhile facts from the whole world of glass.