Topic: Could this be Isle of Wight blue gold leaf Azurene

[mhgcgolfclub]

Could this be a blue gold leaf Azurene Isle of Wight piece of glass. 

Shaped a bit like a ruby ball.

The vase is not signed . Polished pontil mark, seems to show signs of some age with ware to base.

Measures approx 13" or 33cm in length , 6.5" or 16cm in height, diameter 6" or 16cm , and weighs 3125 gm.

Thanks for any help.

Roy

[glassobsessed]

It does not look like it, not a standard production shape and there does not seem to be as much gold leaf used as I would expect - there are patches with none at all. It is also huge, very heavy and with a crude neck, again not what I would expect.

Saying that, I am not the best person to comment on Azurene - I can't stand the stuff....

Is it all gold leaf or is there a mixture of gold and silver leaf?

John

[flying free]

I don't know but I think it is gorgeous.  I love the fact that it's not a standard 'vase' shape and the neck rim - great shape.
m

[mhgcgolfclub]

Thanks John and m

I am not 100% sure but its looks like all gold leaf. Its not really my type of glass but thought it looked a bit different.

Roy

[chopin-liszt]

That's silver leaf which has discoloured in the heat.
It looks very, very like it might have been made by Charlie Meaker.
His work tends to be big, have the silver leaf discoloured and have strappy clear bits around the top. I've not seen this exact shape before. Charlie Meaker did train for a while at IoWSG, and is in "The Glasshouse Tree", having been there in 1978. He is, according to the catalogue from the exhibition "The Glasshouse and its Tree", currently director of the Inferno Glassworks, Bornholm, Denmark.

I've not seen a Charlie Meaker piece this shape before.

[mhgcgolfclub]

Thanks Sue

I have just found this link http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bozemandailychronicle/obituary.aspx?n=charles-r-charlie-meaker&pid=152794099

Roy

[ahremck]

Roy there was an Isle of Man glass item positively identified recently.  I have a very similar small vase but the slight irridescence over gould leaf was present.  No time to search this site just now but worth a look I think.

Ross

[chopin-liszt]

I'm 99.9999999999999999% positive your piece is Charlie Meaker.
I'll try to get a pic of my (massive!) bit soon.

This isn't iridesence over gold leaf, this is decidedly the silver reacting with the glass. It's FAR too big to be Isle of Man, St John's, or Guernsey or any of those other Harris "dynasty" makers. Honest!

[chopin-liszt]

Pics.  
On close inspection (while washing it for it's debut) I believe there is some gold foil to the base, as well as all the silver everywhere else. It is unsigned but I bought it some years ago, from Duncan Robinson (in whom I trust) who told me it was Charlie Meaker - the identification has also been confirmed by Ron Wheeler.


The blue has come out a bit deep - I had to shut the curtains to stop bright sunlight coming in. It is, in reality, the same blue as Roy's bit, I see there is some gold foil on Roy's too.

[glassobsessed]

Both pieces look like all gold leaf on my monitor, I can not see any silver at all.

John