Topic: Large Ysart Bros weight?

[SophieB]

Hi,

This weight finished a few days ago. The colours are quite striking (not to mention the size) and I am puzzled as to who made it: is it a Salvador Ysart or Ysart Bros? Something else?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160680684498?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649#ht_500wt_1204

I would be interested in people's opinion.

SophieB

PS: it is not mine. I am just curious.

[KevinH]

I was one of those who did not bid enough to win it!

Fascinating item, if a little on the unattractive side and having elements of imperfection in the way the outer canes and twists are set. It is of about the same diameter as the base section of some of the Ysart bottles, both Salvador types and Paul types.

Although super magnum Ysart weights (over 4 inch) are more well known as being by Paul Ysart I have seen a couple (one 4.5 inch and another almost 5 inch!) that were clearly Ysart Brothers or earlier in terms of working and canes.

My view is that the eBay weight was the work of Salvador Ysart. I would like to have won the auction in order to check it out thoroughly but it was not one that I felt "will be mine at any cost"!

[SophieB]

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for the answer. I was intrigued by it but not would have bid. I thought the weight well made and of course unusually large, hence my question. And I was surprised by the colours (the combination of which I find seriously unattractive but that's just me...).

SophieB

[Derek]

Hi Sophie and Kev

I too favour the Ysart Brothers line rather than Paul

The vivid orange in this weight looks like the orange that Ysart Brothers made from ground up Vitrolite tiles when colour was in
VERY short supply as was cash. Ysart Brothers used whatever they could lay their hands on.

Paul on the other hand stayed at Moncrieffs after WWII and I am not aware that he had any need to resort to these measures.

Kev - you don't mention the base -  difficult to tell from the picture but the area outside the pontil scar appears to have been
ground down in a similar way to Vasart.  Is this also typical of Salvador?

Best regards

Derek

[KevinH]

The base photo does not show the detail needed to determine how it has actually been finsihed. Is the "ground" area all grinding or is it at least partly age wear? Is the central area a simple, single cracking off scar or is there more to it than that? Are there any "cutting in marks" visible in or around the "ground" area? Is the base flat, indented or raised in the middle?

Too may queries to make any guesses.

As for the orange ... there were many variations in the shade of orange seen in finished Ysart items and there was also variation in how "smooth" or "crunchy" the grounds were. I suspect that much of the reason was a difficulty in maintaining a "standard" orange colour as it was apparently quite hard to control when being worked.

Different shades and textures of "Ysart orange" could be a good collecting area for somebody.

[SophieB]

Hi Kev,

This 'fascinating' collecting area should really be up your street as I am sure you have quite a lot of material already (me, I do not even own one single Ysart - Paul, Salvador or Ysart Bros - orange ground weight  :cry:). I look forward to a PCC  article presenting your findings  .

SophieB

[KevinH]

But I only have eight ... not enough ... probably needs at least twenty to start doing something on those lines.