Any blown glass and crystal glass experts here? A few questions

Kapidr

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Mar 17, 2014
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Found these awesome finds at a local estate sale. I know the clear crystal pictured are Waterford

The Goblet is not Waterford. It is marked Bombay on the bottom but if you look at it from the bottom it is backwards. You have to look at the mark through the top of the square base to see it properly upright. SEE PHOTO

Question 1. Anyone know anything about the BOMBAY makers mark? I can not find it anywhere online. This goblet appears to have 4 seams as well.

Question 2 The green and red and blue bottles appear to be hand blown. From what I can tell they have no makers mark on them anywhere. I can not find them anywhere online after days of searching so I turn to you, the experts who never let me down, for help :) Can anyone tell me anything about the red, blue and green items? The only thing I know about them is that they are hand blown and they are crystal.

Thanks!

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Looking for the colored glass as I type this......its being a little elusive to say the least. In the meantime hopefully one of the smarter members chimes in with an answer.

Thanks I appreciate it! This one has driven me nuts searching for it!
 

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Mike has been great in helping you with the 'Bombay' glass. :thumbsup: Your coloured bottles are typically referred to as 'Bohemian' glass.

"Bohemian glass, chiefly referred to as Bohemia crystal, is glass produced in the regions of Bohemia and Silesia, now parts of the Czech Republic. It has a centuries long history of being internationally recognized for its high quality, craftsmanship, beauty and often innovative designs. Hand-cut, engraved, blown and painted decorative glassware ranging from champagne flutes to enormous chandeliers, ornaments, figurines and other glass items are among the best known Czech exports and immensely popular as tourist souvenirs. The Czech Republic is home to numerous glass studios and schools attended by local and foreign students.

In the second half of the 19th century, Bohemia looked to the export trade and mass-produced coloured glass that was exported all over the world. Pairs of vases were produced either in a single colour of opaque glass or in two-colour cased glass. These were decorated in thickly enamelled flower subjects that were painted with great speed. Others were decorated with coloured lithographic prints copying famous paintings. These glass objects were made in huge quantities in large factories and were available by mail order throughout Europe and America. Many of them were not fine art but provided inexpensive decorative objects to brighten up ordinary homes."

Dave
 

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Mike has been great in helping you with the 'Bombay' glass. :thumbsup: Your coloured bottles are typically referred to as 'Bohemian' glass.

"Bohemian glass, chiefly referred to as Bohemia crystal, is glass produced in the regions of Bohemia and Silesia, now parts of the Czech Republic. It has a centuries long history of being internationally recognized for its high quality, craftsmanship, beauty and often innovative designs. Hand-cut, engraved, blown and painted decorative glassware ranging from champagne flutes to enormous chandeliers, ornaments, figurines and other glass items are among the best known Czech exports and immensely popular as tourist souvenirs. The Czech Republic is home to numerous glass studios and schools attended by local and foreign students.

In the second half of the 19th century, Bohemia looked to the export trade and mass-produced coloured glass that was exported all over the world. Pairs of vases were produced either in a single colour of opaque glass or in two-colour cased glass. These were decorated in thickly enamelled flower subjects that were painted with great speed. Others were decorated with coloured lithographic prints copying famous paintings. These glass objects were made in huge quantities in large factories and were available by mail order throughout Europe and America. Many of them were not fine art but provided inexpensive decorative objects to brighten up ordinary homes."

Dave

Thank you for the reply! I have been now researching this morning Bohemian glass but still can not find this style.
 

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Mike has been great in helping you with the 'Bombay' glass. :thumbsup: Your coloured bottles are typically referred to as 'Bohemian' glass.

"Bohemian glass, chiefly referred to as Bohemia crystal, is glass produced in the regions of Bohemia and Silesia, now parts of the Czech Republic. It has a centuries long history of being internationally recognized for its high quality, craftsmanship, beauty and often innovative designs. Hand-cut, engraved, blown and painted decorative glassware ranging from champagne flutes to enormous chandeliers, ornaments, figurines and other glass items are among the best known Czech exports and immensely popular as tourist souvenirs. The Czech Republic is home to numerous glass studios and schools attended by local and foreign students.

In the second half of the 19th century, Bohemia looked to the export trade and mass-produced coloured glass that was exported all over the world. Pairs of vases were produced either in a single colour of opaque glass or in two-colour cased glass. These were decorated in thickly enamelled flower subjects that were painted with great speed. Others were decorated with coloured lithographic prints copying famous paintings. These glass objects were made in huge quantities in large factories and were available by mail order throughout Europe and America. Many of them were not fine art but provided inexpensive decorative objects to brighten up ordinary homes."

Dave

Thanks for the kind words and vote of confidence Dave, hard to compete and keep up with the likes of you on here. :notworthy:
 

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Thank you for the reply! I have been now researching this morning Bohemian glass but still can not find this style.

The issue at times is so many different examples have been made over the years, that not all the patterns are shown online. One path/option is to join a web site that specializes in Bohemian (Style) Glass/Crystal and get more specialized help. I know it's not the answer you seek, but I've exhausted all the verbiage-fu on my Google-fu that I can come up with and stuck out. I can find examples with verticle cuts, horizontal cuts but not with diagonal cuts.

If I can't sleep again tonight I'll burn the midnight oil with some other ideals.
 

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Not as bulb-like on the bottom, flared lip, and more than 24 ribs ... still similar to Zanesville (Ohio) styles from the 1800's.

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Thanks for the kind words and vote of confidence Dave, hard to compete and keep up with the likes of you on here. :notworthy:

Thanks very much for your compliment Mike... combined, I think we all make a dam good team. :thumbsup:

Hope you're not in the path of Dorian,
Dave
 

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Thank you for the reply! I have been now researching this morning Bohemian glass but still can not find this style.

Your vintage glass decanters were likely made more for display then for functionality. They're mold blown, with a ground and fire polished base and may have been made in Czechoslovakia(Bohemia), India or even Italy. :icon_scratch:
The bases show little to no sign of wear, this is why I'd say they're modern reproduction's likely dating to the 1950s - 60s.

To know for sure, I would take them to a local antique dealer in your area and have them inspected. :thumbsup:
Dave

 

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Your vintage glass decanters were likely made more for display then for functionality. They're mold blown, with a ground and fire polished base and may have been made in Czechoslovakia(Bohemia), India or even Italy. :icon_scratch:
The bases show little to no sign of wear, this is why I'd say they're modern reproduction's likely dating to the 1950s - 60s.

To know for sure, I would take them to a local antique dealer in your area and have them inspected. :thumbsup:
Dave


well technically the colored ones are hand blown not mold blown. The only mould used was an optic mold for the ridges that was used very early on before the shaping process. Mold blown glass refers to pieces shaped by moulds for the final shape/product. All these color pieces are indeed more modern as you say, could be anywhere from the 1950s to last year. i would wager closer to last year than the 50's due to the colors and style of blowing, but I could be wrong. I also don't believe these colored ones to be crystal at all, makes no sense. 99% likely that it is soda lime based glass not "crystal". Also the bottoms are not flame polished, rather they ground on a lathe wheel. As to how I know all this, I have been working with glass for well over 10 years, and am the technician for the largest educational glass facility in the country.
 

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These are perplexing. Some keywords and questions that should lead to something, but not having any luck.

Pitkin Swirl


decanter
carafe
flask

goblet
chalice
stemware

What is this shape called ? It seems to be somewhat unique ? Not exactly "globular".
Root beer red (dark amber) seems common for older bottles .
Brighter red seems more modern. Are we getting into barware ?

Unique decanter and glasses (goblets) ... might they have been sets?

More than 24 ribs ... seems to be more prevalent in modern styles ?

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct...aw37wuJYoI8EpIdEhlMz0q4f&ust=1567602904153432
 

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My opinion is that these were quick money makers for who ever made them (probably a single artist and not a company), and they were made pretty recently. Indicators of this to me are poorly ground and polished bottoms, not signed, atypical goblet stem/foot style that lends to quick production vs traditional methods which are much differently constructed, and the colors. The colors stick out for a few reasons, one is because the blue is not a cobalt blue. Historically cobalt blue was used because of how nice a blue you got for cheap and easy. the blue used here looks like a much more modern color. The red as well stands out. Historically reds were obtained from crazy **** like cadmium selenium glass(think old fenton or blenko striking reds that go from reds to oranges to yellows). this is a much different red that also looks more modern to me. If I was forced to put an earliest date on these I would guess no older than the 1990s, as this is what I seem to remember from from how color changed in the glass blowing industry when I began in mid 2000s where stuff was still drastically changing. Plug and play I would also call them barware and decanters. The mold that gives the ridges is called an optic mold.
 

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well technically the colored ones are hand blown not mold blown. The only mould used was an optic mold for the ridges that was used very early on before the shaping process. Mold blown glass refers to pieces shaped by moulds for the final shape/product. All these color pieces are indeed more modern as you say, could be anywhere from the 1950s to last year. i would wager closer to last year than the 50's due to the colors and style of blowing, but I could be wrong. I also don't believe these colored ones to be crystal at all, makes no sense. 99% likely that it is soda lime based glass not "crystal". Also the bottoms are not flame polished, rather they ground on a lathe wheel. As to how I know all this, I have been working with glass for well over 10 years, and am the technician for the largest educational glass facility in the country.

Thanks very much for the clarification Tpmetal. :thumbsup:
That's one of the things I love some much about this site... learning from others who've been there and done that.

Dave
 

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My opinion is that these were quick money makers for who ever made them (probably a single artist and not a company)

I was getting similar vibes when researching, Tp.
Was wondering if they might be something requested for an expensive wedding. Or a high-end hotel/restaurant. Someone willing to spend extra to have one-of-a-kind furnishings. IDK
 

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Thanks very much for the clarification Tpmetal. :thumbsup:
That's one of the things I love some much about this site... learning from others who've been there and done that.

Dave

Yeah, it also helps having one of the top glass museums in the world down the road from me. So I have seen a whole lot of modern and historical glass.

I was getting similar vibes when researching, Tp.
Was wondering if they might be something requested for an expensive wedding. Or a high-end hotel/restaurant. Someone willing to spend extra to have one-of-a-kind furnishings. IDK
Hard to say. I myself only don't sign my work if it is basic stuff like christmas ornaments and cups or if the piece is commissioned by another artist for part of a gallery show(basically it was not my idea I was just the labor). I see other artist not sign things because maybe they are involved in the gallery fine art world, so they don't sign their production work so it doesn't muddy their name(artist are part of a very vain world as are collectors).
 

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