Topic: Mdina Glass Vase

[mhgcgolfclub]

A nice Mdina glass vase . I thought might be worth posting.

Height just over 7" / 18cm.

Weight 1250 gm.

I could only find one other similar vase which sold at my local auction in 2010.

Roy

[chopin-liszt]

This design comes in a few shapes I know of - this barrel, a tall (8") unstoppered bottle with straight sides and short attenuated neck bottles.
You really don't see much of it around. I believe it to be post-Harris, but from the period while Boffo and Dobson were still there, before Said took over and designs became a lot more simple and far easier to execute. It's probably  Dobson design. I would put it somewhere between '71 and '77.
There are a few ranges from this period which are (IMNSHO) absolutely wonderful and well worth collecting - this one; the yellow splodgy background, with marvered in strapping of splodgy orange, one seen far more often - the red (often described as orange) streaky/cloudy background with blue (often described as green) strapping; and finally, one which is a Harris design, but was mostly produced after he left, the two-tone amethyst and blue pieces with thin clear strapping.

The base body is clear, but stuffed full of silver chloride crizzle, and blue strapping is applied externally. I can't really see too well from your pics that the body has the crizzled silver chloride effect... does it?

[wolkenreb]

You sure know your Mdina Sue!

[chopin-liszt]

 
hmmm - I should have added that you do see the red/blue (or as some folk see it, orange/green) around a lot more than this one - that colour combination lasted well into the '80s.

But thanks for giving me the chance to correct myself a bit, (as well as prove I do make mistakes) Nancy!

[mhgcgolfclub]

Thanks Sue I have certainly learnt a lot of information from you. I see a lot of Mdina as I go to lots of fairs but I could not remember seeing another piece quite like this.

When I first looked at it I did think there was some silver chloride in the glass so I would say yes to that question. I will try and take another picture when not so cloudy.

Roy 

[chopin-liszt]

There is silver chloride in it, Roy, that's how the yellows and ochres are produced - from the reaction between the silver and the hot glass. The question for your piece is, is it the crizzle pattern inside the body in the yellows/ochres, or is it just sort of cloudy. The difference in the making would be significant - to produce the crizzle effect requires that the body gather is subjected to cold water treatment before the addition of the silver chloride.
I'll sort some pics out.

There has been a lot of concentrated interest in Harris period only - folk haven't taken enough interest (IMNSHO) in the stuff being produced after he left, but while Dobson was still in charge as manager - but also having influence as a designer, and,

  thanks yet again to Wolfie who went to Malta and tracked Said down to ask him about Vicente Boffo, and discovered that Boffo had stayed at Mdina until '77, 

we know that his talent was still available - also during this period, Joseph Said was obviously improving his considerable natural skills as a glassmaker. So wonderful and complicated designs were still being produced.

[chopin-liszt]

Pics of two short attenuated bottles and two stopperless bottles.
These stopperless ones were never designed to have an optional stopper, in this colourway and I've never seen one which could have had a stopper, although both styles were produced in the red/blue colourway.

[chopin-liszt]

And one of my barrel ones (don't have a pic of the other)

[mhgcgolfclub]

Thank you Sue for taking the trouble to add pictures of your pieces.

Sorry for the late reply but had to make a trip from Sussex to Edinburgh by car over the weekend.

My piece has no crizzle pattern just cloudy. I have to say I do love the piece and may look out for other pieces, may be the start of a new collection but only from fairs etc I visit.

Thanks Roy