Topic: Murano or another chinese? ID: Modern Chinese

[Pain]

Please tell me I got it right this time.  I purchased this single bud fish vase.  We were told it was Murano and having been to Murano I really should know but was surprised how cheap it was for the condition it is so now I have doubts again.  I need reassuring or otherwise please.

[TxSilver]

Sorry. I don't know if it is Chinese or not, but it is not very good quality. There are some very good books for people who are learning Murano. The best primer I can recommend is Leslie Pina's Italian Glass Century 20. It has a sample of Murano from different companies. It is far from complete, but gives an idea of what to look for in Murano. Amazon.com has the book at reasonable prices. A good book can ultimately save a lot of money in helping you to prevent mistake purchases.

[Pain]

Hi thanks for the book recommendation I am on the lookout for the books at the moment.  I do have to disagree with the quality though but appreciate your opinion, the pic doesn't do him justice so have tried again. 

[Max]

I'm sorry, but I agree with Anita about this item, which is handy cos she's an expert in Italian glass.    Items like this are quite common and without enough knowledge it will be tricky for you to form an opinion about what good quality might be.  Also, as Chopinliszt (Sue) said in another thread, by learning the basics of how glass is manufactured it will be easier to gauge what good manufacture is.  

Are there glass fairs in France (I should know the answer to that, but I don't!)?  Is there any way you could get to actually handle some named glass until your books start arriving?  :hiclp: :thup:

 

[Pain]

Hi yes have been today and this is where he came from lol

[Max]

What was the fish sold to you as?

[TxSilver]

Don't feel bad, Pain. I remember when I first started buying glass. I bought some things that make your fish look like Barovier.  :cry: It still hurts to think about these pieces (which I unloaded at last year's garage sale). I learned a lot from the purchases, though. Usually the more glass a person sees, the better they are at spotting the good pieces. It is the good things about books -- they let you see a lot without buying all the pieces. A good book pays for itself in no time.

There are some very good online sites for looking at Murano glass, too. One of my favorite sites when I first started collecting Murano was http://www.great-glass.co.uk/library/libindex.htm. There is a good assortment of murano under the Italian links. I like this site because the glass is not too high-brow. Some of the sites concentrate on upper-shelf pieces that most of us cannot even afford.

I am still confused by fish vases. I can never figure out who did most of them.

[Pain]

Max it was sold to me as Murano but as I said on a previous post (dare I say this) I dont always believe what I am told I would be a fool to do so 
Anita thank you for your encouraging words I am going to keep going because I am really enjoy it also my DDs always come with me and gives them the opportunity to learn also.
I did surprise myself and stopped myself from being ripped off when I recognised the Bullet vase though so I am learning something even if it isn't Italian 

[Artofvenice]

Hi, I suspect it is from China, also if made in "murano style". That specific opaque white color is very used in these "replica" glassworks and the venetian "cheap" shops are really full of these items ( )

Sorry

Sincerely

Alex
www.artofvenice.com