Hello again Peter. You raise a few interesting points that I’d like to comment on.
First, you note (with regard to Carnival) that you feel “so much is brash and (sorry !) downright vulgar.” Gasp :oops: Actually, I take no offence at your opinion at all :lol: . I agree, some Carnival is not pretty. As with all forms and types of glass, some examples are good to look at and some are not.
You mentioned “simpler subtle pieces”. The pastels (ice colors like ice blue, ice green, pastel marigold, white etc.) would probably fit into that category. These were mainly produced by the US manufacturers, with Northwood being the King of these more delicate shades. The Swedish firm Eda Glasbruks also produced some delicately colored Carnival, but this is seldom seen.
With most Carnival, it is that vividness of color, combined with beauty of design and exquisiteness of shape, which usually captivates the collector. Not everyone likes it. That’s fine by me - less competition for me at Fairs and Auctions :lol: .
You also mentioned the Persian pattern you saw on eBay. I think you might be referring to Fenton’s Persian Medallion design. It’s an intricate, lacy pattern, inspired by Persian motifs and executed in a style imitative of a complex embroidery design. It’s seen at its best on a flat plate, when the iridescence shimmers over its surface, highlighting the elaborate cameo design.
You also asked - “I note that very few pieces of carnival on Ebay UK are attributed as to maker. Is there a book concentrating on British Carnival Glass ? European ? Simpler , subtle pieces ?” The answer is yes, our book “A Century of Carnival Glass”. It doesn’t concentrate purely on British Carnival - it covers the output of the European and South American makers too (also the Indian ones). The main producer of English Carnival was Sowerby, but other companies (eg Canning Town Glass Company) are also known to have produced small amounts.
A fair amount of (“unknown maker”) marigold items that are found in the UK are often vaguely attributed as “English”. Not so. Many of them are in fact Czech or possibly German.
Finally, you touched on values. Carnival is a fickle creature! With well over a thousand patterns documented, and 60 or more acknowledged colors, in goodness-knows-how-many shapes - it’s important to get the right combination in order to achieve the real highs. “Rare but who cares” is an oft-heard cry :roll: .
At the top end of the scale are the (take a deep breath) items like the two plates that sold on eBay a couple of weeks back. Each one took around $25,000. Yes, I did type that correctly. And the highest publicly recorded price for Carnival so far has been around $87,000 (the current estimate of the value of the item - an aqua opal punch set - is around $95,000).