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Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass => Unresolved Glass Queries => Topic started by: mrvaselineglass on August 10, 2006, 03:02:22 AM

Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: mrvaselineglass on August 10, 2006, 03:02:22 AM
Hello all
I have not written in a while, but wanted to show two pieces that showed up from England today (both made it safely to Oklahoma!).
the first is a Blue opalescent ice cream dish from Davidson.  I now have two sizes.  The blue one is the smaller of the two, and the second link shows how it 'stacks' inside the primrose pearline version.  
http://www.vaselineglass.org/blueshell.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/blueshell1.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/blue2x.jpg
and, here is a photo of just the yellow version:
http://www.vaselineglass.org/davidsonicecream.jpg
I am still trying to find one of the PRIMROSE PEARLINE versions in the smaller size.  I bought 4 of the blue small versions in a single auction.

The next one is a real mystery.
The stem is 3 1/4" across the top.  It is 4 3/4" tall.  It is deep cut just below the top rim and just above the stem.  There is a heraldry or coat of arms and a latin saying below it, translating to something like "LIFE, SOCIETY, & HOPE".  What is really unusual about this is the color.  It is a very rich amber, yet has a high uranium content.  It is also a very heavy piece of glass, weighing in at 11.45 ounces (345 grams).  here are some photos.  The black and white photo was converted to get a better look at the coat of arms symbol.  The bottom has a polished pontil and shows good age in the surface wear.
http://www.vaselineglass.org/latin1.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/latinbw.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/latincloseup.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/latincloseup1.jpg
http://www.vaselineglass.org/latin.jpg

I also noticed from my close up photo that I did not clean it very well before taking the pictures.  the almond vertical cuttings on the top rim are dirty in the deep crevices.  Anyway, any help on who might have made the stemware or even approximate age might be of some help!  The color is an exactl match to grade A fancy maple syrup!  The piece was advertised as an amber glass, but I could see the green highlights around the edges and took a chance (that paid off handsomely!)

Dave
aka: Mr. Vaseline Glass
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: robbo on August 10, 2006, 08:18:00 AM
Hi Dave -

The emblem on the left hand half of the shield looks like a Maltese cross.  :?

robbo
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Frank on August 10, 2006, 08:48:59 AM
Critter at the top is a segreant Griffon and the coronet/wreath he rises from indicates a member of the non-royal nobility and that is also a warrior. The cross is not a Maltese, more like a crusader, the dove and olive branch mean peace. The horizontal lines behind the Griffon are the convention for blue, if the other side is plain it will be white or silver. (If dotted Yellow or Gold)

Actually tracking down the family would involve contacting th College of Arms in London for English nobility, but it could be an Irish arms or other European.

A browse through a copy of Burke's Peerage might be the easiest.

http://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: mrvaselineglass on August 10, 2006, 12:57:33 PM
there is a website called allexperts.com and someone was able to provide the proper definition for the latin wording on my cup.  here it is:

The motto “Animae Crux Anchora “ means literally: "The cross [is] the anchor of the soul".

In fact:

-ANIMAE (singular genitive case of the noun ANIMA, 1st.declension)  means “of the soul”.

-CRUX ( singular nominative case of this noun which belongs to the 3rd.declension) means “the cross” as the symbol of Christianity, which helps us to endure pain. It is the subject of the phrase.

-ANCHORA ( singular nominative case of this noun which belongs to the 1st. declension) means “the anchor” as a source of security. It is the Predicate Nominative of the phrase.

In this Latin motto, as well as in other mottoes, the present indicative 3rd.pers.sing. EST (‘is’ in English) has been omitted  as it was not necessary  for comprehension.

Someone in another email group suggested that this cup might be a communion cup.  The cup holds 5 oz. to the top rim, so is sort of small (or would just have to be refilled a lot).

ANYONE ever see this color of uranium glass before?
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Lustrousstone on August 10, 2006, 04:37:32 PM
I would go for Thomas Webb's sunshine Amber if it truly is a golden amber. See here, but scroll down http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,6672.0.html

Or if a more brown amber, Royal Brierley dark amber

Or there also appears to have been an unknown Midlands/Stourbridge manufacturer/engaver of sunshine amber type uranium glass as well!

Or Edinburgh Crystal produced a uranium amber that looked like Sunshine Amber (different formula though) after it merged with Webb.

That's given some UK thoughts. Here a continental Europe thought, although possibly less likely, in palest brown amber. See here but scroll down
http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,5843.0.html


BTW You're cheating that's not proper US vaseline, that's MY type of vaseline :shock:  :evil:
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Max on August 10, 2006, 05:04:48 PM
Dave...I thought it was an odd colour when you posted it, but thought 'hey, he knows what he's talking about!'.  It's green isn't it?  Not amber?  Your initial posting was ambiguous to me because I don't know what Grade  A Fancy Maple Syrup colour is...lol
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Lustrousstone on August 10, 2006, 05:08:09 PM
It's amber Max, but only when there's no UV light to be seen                      :shock: Honest
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: pamela on August 10, 2006, 07:20:19 PM
http://www.pressglas-pavillon.de/vasen/02532.html

this (presumably WMF) amber vase is vividly green if blacklit  :wink:

If I look diagonally through the upper rim I see the uranium green also in daylight  :)
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Max on August 10, 2006, 08:02:34 PM
Thanks Christine...I'm going to watch this thread with interest, looks like I'll learn something.  :D
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: mrvaselineglass on August 10, 2006, 10:15:00 PM
Christine
I have the lid to that decanter that you posted a link to (specifically, THIS ONE:)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b217/lustrousstone/IMG_0408.jpg
AND my cup in the daylight, bright sunlight (106 F today!) is an exact match!
( I once had a decanter and two lids, but sold it off, but kept one lid just for the color sample).
Having said that, I also have a piece of sunshine amber by Webb in my collection, and this cup is darker amber than Webb's sunshine amber.  
I am thinking continental Europe also, most likely Bohemian.  

The thing that surprises me most about this piece is it's weight!  11.45 oz (345grams) is heavy for a cup that is not 5" tall!  

Thanks for digging up that thread, to remind me to compare it to the stopper I have.  Indoors, the piece looks amber.  Outdoors (under the UV of the sun), it is more of a deep olive color.

Dave
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: ChrisStewart on August 11, 2006, 09:28:24 PM
Hi,

What are the sizes of your shells? Davidson made over 80 different styles of shells, very few of which are illustrated in the available Davidson catalogues. The first was introduced in 1900 (called Shell No. 1) and made in 4 sizes (4.5, 5.5, 6.5 and 11.5 inches). It was still being made in the 1960s - in fact in 1964 it was remade in slag glass.

Regards

Chris
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: mrvaselineglass on August 12, 2006, 12:12:40 AM
Chris
The blue shell is 4.5 inches long and 3.5" wide.  the Primrose pearline version I have is 5.5" long and 4" wide, so the blue one fits nicely inside the Primrose version.
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: ChrisStewart on August 12, 2006, 06:23:27 AM
Hi again,

looks like your shells are the No. 1 shell. Of all the shells Davidson made these seem to be the most common.

Regards

Chris
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Adam on August 12, 2006, 10:03:22 AM
Chris - was there a known gap in shell production post-WW2?  Unless I'm getting even more senile than I thought, I never saw any of these made (1956-61 as you know).  There were a few oddball unmelted jobs made in small quantities which I will have forgotten but the samples illustrated certainly look melted and I doubt if I would have forgotten those.

Perhaps they were withdrawn in the Tom Barton retrenching era and re-introduced by Abrahams, unless they didn't reappear after WW2 until after I'd gone.

Or is it just me?

Adam D.
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: ChrisStewart on August 12, 2006, 02:53:12 PM
Hi Adam,

A Davidson price list of 1954 lists 4 shells, No. 1 (two sizes), No. 2, No. 13 and 1911. Their 1961 catalogue does not include any shells, so I think by then Davidson had stopped making them.

Davidson must have re-introduced the No. 1 shell in 1964 purely for their Marble glass range. They seemed to have made quite a varied mixture of items in this range.

Regards

Chris
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: mrvaselineglass on August 12, 2006, 09:29:41 PM
Chris
Yes, these are the two sizes of "No. 1" shells.  However, I truly suspect that the blue Pearline, and especially the Primrose Pearline, are about as rare as it gets in regards to colors made in the shell patterns.  When I bought the Primrose Pearline 2 years ago at the Glass Faire, I showed it to several very knowledgeable dealers and all of them suggested it was an American-made piece.  I even showed it to Raymond Slack, and he did not recognize it.  His partner said she thought it was Davidson, but was not certain.  If a room with 110 "cream of the crop" dealers from the heart of England don't recognize it as Davidson, I guess I would question your remark of "all the shells Davidson made these seem to be the most common."  The shells might be common, but the colors are not.  I suspected that blue pearline was made, but until I actually saw these for sale, I had no proof that they existed, and I consider myself fairly knowledgable on Davidson's glass that was made in blue or primrose pearline.
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: Bernard C on August 13, 2006, 07:20:52 AM
Quote from: "mrvaselineglass"
... If a room with 110 "cream of the crop" dealers from the heart of England don't recognize it ...

Dave — On some occasions 110 dealers can be 110 times as confusing as just one dealer!   You may be surprised to know that the most inflential person in the way I look at British glass today is perhaps Dr. Rosa Barovier, and it took me a long time to really appreciate her advice, given to me at a short meeting in Venice nearly three years ago.

Bernard C.  8)
Title: An unusual Davidson piece, and a mystery uranium stem
Post by: ChrisStewart on August 13, 2006, 09:30:22 AM
Quote from: "mrvaselineglass"
I guess I would question your remark of "all the shells Davidson made these seem to be the most common."  The shells might be common, but the colors are not.


I agree that the pearline colours are as rare as hen's teeth, but when looking at total production, then the No.1 shell is the most common of all the Davidson shells. When looking at all shell dishes the most common one found in the UK is probably the Jobling pyrex one.

Quote from: "mrvaselineglass"
If a room with 110 "cream of the crop" dealers from the heart of England don't recognize it as Davidson


It was not that many years ago that most dealers thought all cloud glass was Davidson. New information is coming to light all of the time. When researching our Davidson book we came across a lot of new information and were able to show that some 'facts' about Davidson were wrong and resulted from mis-interpretation of records.

I think the thing that has had the most affect on our knowledge of glass has to be Pressglas korrespondenz. The large number of catalogues available from Siegmar has opened a new window on the glass world. For Davidson collectors two things come to mind from reading these catalogues. Firstly the Streit glassworks made a pattern that is identical to the Davidson Daisy pattern and secondly that Fenner made a pattern identical to Davidson’s 1897 suite (RD 285342) and some pieces were made in Primrose Pearline. There are many  other examples of similar patterns.

Chris