Roy: Either you have an eye for choosing good quality glass or only good quality American cut glass was profitable to export - maybe a bit of both. From what I remember, there has been a Hawkes punch bowl, Buffalo Niagra bowl, Laurel Miriam tray and now your compote/sweet pea vase cut by Meriden. I occasionally search eBay UK for American cut glass and am rarely disappointed - even if nothing American is found, it is interesting to see examples of English cut glass. Although there are "transition" pieces of cut glass prior to the American Brilliant period, generally beginning in 1870, where it is extremely difficult to discern English from American origin, I get the feeling the English have kept their own more refined and elegant style and have never attempted to copy American designs. Many of the founders of the early American cut glass companies immigrated from Europe, especially England and Ireland, bringing their own styles to America. "Rich cut" at least for advertising purposes seems to have meant American cut glass with "brilliant cut" used by the English. An American company by the name of Suffolk Glass Works advertised "rich cut tableware" in 1862 so the 1870 beginning of the American Brilliant period may have begun earlier.
The styles and blank shapes of German and Polish cut glass also appear quite different from American cut glass.
Val St. Lambert's 1908 catalog reprinted by the ACGA contains glass which had been thought to be American until that catalog was discovered. Although written of course in French, it was determined that any of the items in that YSL catalog were available in "cut to clear." There is no mention in American catalogs or advertisements offering cut to clear glass. So, unless a cut to clear piece is cut in a pattern attributable to an American cutting house, Val St. Lambert is usually the first suspect. Val St. Lambert was also a known blank supplier to American cutting companies, as was Baccarat. Black light testing can yield interesting information in this regard.
I believe it's the eastern European companies which have produced the American Brilliant period-like cut glass. If the pinwheel motif originated in America, approximately 1900 would be the earliest a pinwheel piece could have been made. Although pinwheels were beautifully cut by some companies such as Quaker City, this motif is not as popular and in fact avoided by some collectors as it brands it to a time in the American Brilliant period when many other labor-cost saving measures were widely used, such as figured blanks and chemical polishing. Pinwheels were easier to cut than hobstars.
Yasemin advertised it was reproducing old American cut glass. Does anyone know if they are still in business? A well-respected man named Pepi Hermann here in America has been recreating American Brilliant cut glass with his own designs for decades. Counterfeit ABP cut glass was also made - a conspicuous number of very rare patterned pieces appeared on the market in, as I recall, the 1980s. The producer of the glass has never been determined but it was sold primarily by an ex-ACGA member. There were great losses financially and no one knows whether all the counterfeit glass has been discovered. This naturally led to better methods of determining authenticity of American Brilliant cut glass, especially at ACGA-sponsored shows and events, and includes black light testing as one of a number of tools.
A wave of reproduction American Brilliant period cut glass may appear which is produced in China. A prominent ACGA member last year was contacted by a business man who wanted to buy catalogs. It appeared to be on behalf of a Chinese company who was offering to reproduce any pattern in the catalogs desired. Of course the request was refused and is laughable as some catalog pictures are of poor quality and in many cases not all of a pattern can be seen. If the Chinese want American catalogs they can and will find them elsewhere.
I'm hoping Jindra will be able to identify the maker of your bowl. It's an impressive cut glass piece but for reasons I can't quite put my finger on believe it was (eastern) European made.
Topic: ABP cut glass bowl (Read 3680 times)
