Topic: is this mark for Maltese decorative glass ?

[KevinH]

A few extra photos:

Larger weight - oblique view showing "pistil" more clearly
Larger weight - side view showing separation of flower and butterfly
Smaller weight - oblique view

[Mosquito]

From the information seen this thread and others it seems very likely that in addition to the locally made, more distinctively Maltese pieces, that MDG/ MGC sold, Chinese made pieces were also imported and sold under the brand(s). I've long believed the fish and other pieces produced in typically Chinese colors were shipped in from the PRC. The Chinese attribution of the OP's weight lends weight to this explanation. This would make sense and would explain why we don't see the more lurid colors seen on the fish, etc. on the more typically Maltese, 'earthtones' style pieces.

This type of arrangement seems quite common in the industry. When I was buying liuli glass for import I contacted a factory in Zhejiang. Although they had an extensive range selling under their name, only certain ranges were made in house. smaller, high volume items such as jewellery, charms and small paperweights were all actually bought in in bulk from a different maker in Shanghai.

it wouldn't make economic sense to produce the OP's style weights in any great number in Malta as China would have had massive production capacity and minimal labour costs at the time. Of course glassblowers from the PRC could have made some but then I'd expect locally made weights to use the same colors as the other Maltese made pieces which doesn't seem to be the case here (the second weight looks unquestionably Maltese, but the OP's is markedly different in all but the mark). if you order glass from China they'll add any mark you want providing you have a big enough order. This is true today and I'm sure it would have been the same 40 yrs ago.

Does anybody know more about the Chinese connection: e.g. what individuals or firms were involved in backing the enterprise? That could prove an interesting avenue to follow, though Chinese records from the period are likely hard to come by. Anyway, if anyone has any names or further data it would be a good starting point. Who knows, if they were local to Jiangsu Province I could maybe even get my students to look into the history as a summer research project 

[Patrick]

 if they were local to Jiangsu Province I could maybe even get my students to look into the history as a summer research project 

Hi Mosquito,

 You might be interested in this topic..........  The fish have many similarities to those with MDG lables.

http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,59080.msg334289.html#msg334289


http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=59308.0;attach=170612;image

[WhatHo!]

Hi, I have been reading this with some interest.

Hi. For us newbies to this area, could you let us know what MCG and MDG stand for please.  My guess is Malta C Glass and Malta D Glass.  C for  and D for Decorative.

This has not been explained correctly and I would like to point out that it’s important we get company names correct. This does not help with new collectors looking for information and muddles on-going research.

MDG = Malta Decorative Glass (’74-early ’78)
CGL = Craft Glass ltd (’78 only, MDG renamed)
MCG = Malta Craft Glass (is not a company name, it appears on the GCL labels as a product description)
MGC = Malta Glass Creations (’84, it has no known connection to any of the above)

Malta Decorative Glass company and the Malta Craft Glass company. Basically the same enterprise, I believe Craft came after Decorative, with more input from China - even some pieces being made there and imported into Malta for sale.

These were not the same enterprises although certain decorative glass products were still being produced or could have been old stock that was relabelled. The Italians (GCL) took over in ’78 and 80% of their production was chandeliers so there must have a considerable drop in decorative glass products at this time.

It seems to me that the one with the Maltese Cross has had the base heated by torch (which is probably how the "ripples" have occurred) and, while still hot, the Cross was impressed. And that would fit with my belief - Made in China but base stamp added later

To add a stamp to the base would make no economic sense as you would need to slowly reheat the weight in a kiln and then use a torch. It would be easier to make a whole new weight.

Surely, if the Chinese invested so much money in the Malta Decorative Glass project they would want to send over some of their best and finest glassblowers to make sure it all kicked-off well. Why wouldn't they be able to make paperweights,(and other glass items) as they did back in China, and add the Maltese cross mark to the base (and paper labels !) ?

I totally agree with this comment, they built a huge factory and brought over Chinese glass blowers so there is no reason why they could not have used their skills gained in China to produce weights in Malta. MDG had 80 workers minimum; they would have needed to produce a lot of pieces to keep them all employed.
Also when they left Malta they could have carried on making these products in China. My thoughts are that there was a flow of workers making very similar products, in China then in Malta and then in China again.

[Nemmie]

I guess the answer is nobody knows but they are of the same style, consistency and poor design of Chinese weights so we can safely put them in that classification.

Unlike the weight which Glassobsessed has posted which has features we would associate with Maltese Art Glass.

Is a weight made by Chinese people with Chinese materials and Chinese training Chinese?  I think a safe answer might be yes.

[chopin-liszt]

Thanks, Wolfie. I have severe memory problems and can't keep up with the perturbations to do with the later Chinese input, which I don't find so interesting.

There isn't any "Maltese Art Glass" company, is there, nemmie? That would just be more confusion.

The weight Glassobsessed posted the image of is Malta Decorative Glass.

[chriscooper]

If not made by an Italian maestro clearly influenced by one

[chriscooper]

If not made by a Chinese man then clearly influenced by one.
Note one's got a MDG and the other MCG label 

[KevinH]

There has been a request that this thread should be moved to the Malta Glass forum, and given the direction the discussion has taken, it may seem reasonable to do that.

However, the topic also remains of interest to people focusing on Paperweights, and especially for those who are not aware of the Maltese Cross stamp applied to some weights.

Perhaps the best solution is to create a new thread in Malta Glass, with relevant title and post a link to this thread in the Paperweights forum.

[Nemmie]

Thanks, Wolfie. I have severe memory problems and can't keep up with the perturbations to do with the later Chinese input, which I don't find so interesting.

There isn't any "Maltese Art Glass" company, is there, nemmie? That would just be more confusion.

The weight Glassobsessed posted the image of is Malta Decorative Glass.

Maltese style/ Chinese Style.

I hope that makes things clearer as to what I was saying.

Maltese style/ Chinese Style.

I hope that makes things clearer as to what I was saying. I certainly wouldn't want to lead to more confusion for the starter of this thread or anyone else for that matter.