Topic: Mdina Swirl Vase - Age Pattern Info Required Please

[Greg.]

Hi,

Just wanted to check the age and pattern for this Mdina Swirl vase, 4.5 inches tall and 5 inches wide.

Wondering if this was produced after 1972...? and would it be described as brown and ochre tortoiseshell..? or an earlier produced pattern. Doesn't Tortoiseshell normally have a more even pattern than the one below..?

Thanks for all your thoughts.

Greg

[chopin-liszt]

Mdina Tortoiseshell doesn't have the frothy yellow background - it's just browns and reds, blobs and streaks with silver nitrate effects (Silver nitrate turns red glass brown).
This is Earthtones - the execution of the design has many, many variations and several quite distinct "hands" can be posited - including that of Vicente Boffo, but this isn't one of his.
Earthtones (A Michael Harris design) is still made, but now called Earth.
The shape of your bit is known as a "Bullet" bowl, I believe these are mostly quite early, but I can't say exactly - I'd imagine pre-'80s. It's quite finely blown, so definitely post Boffos arriving.

[Greg.]

thanks for the info Sue, much appreciated.

[chopin-liszt]

You are most welcome, Greg.  
These Bullet bowls are not that common, each piece of Mdina has to be taken on it's own merits, and this is a particularly nice piece. There is a lot going on in the red/brown marvered-in strapping, lovely streaky, multi-toned effects (which indicate early - later stuff is much plainer, and the yellow frothy bits are very pale) and it's pleasingly delicate.