I've been trying to pin down an ID on this piece for years. I bought it thinking it was a piece by an obscure Cade Cod glass company related to Boston & Sandwich, but a little research proved that incorrect. I took it to the Antiques Roadshow here in the US and the appraiser's first opinion was that it was Venetian. She took it off and talked to someone else who told her it was French and that's what she went with for her appraisal.
Recently, I was going through the
http://www.great-glass.co.uk site's library and found an identical vase cataloged as 19th century Murano with no more information. I was going to link to the image, but their library is down for repairs at the moment.
It's 4.25" tall and about 3.5" in diameter. It's definitely vasa murrhina, and it's definitely old, based on the wear and the fittings. The base layer of glass is black amethyst, and is translucent in strong light.
As always any help is appreciated!