Topic: Unusual footed cut glass creamer - age?

[dirk.]

Hi there,

though not within my typical hunting scheme the unusualness and price made me take this
with me.
I can´t recall having seen a thus shaped creamer (is it?) before.
A similar base treatment with a ground out pontil mark in the middle and radially arranged
ribs can be found on mid 19th century bohemian pieces, but to be honest - not really a clue
where to put this one date-wise or regionally.
It´s ca. 17cm tall.
Anybody shed some light?

Dirk

[brucebanner]

Now that's a lovely piece of cut glass, i would be happy to have that in my collection.

[dirk.]

Thank you, Chris. It was the only gem amidst a large amount of crap... 

[brucebanner]

Looks a lot older than 1850, iv'e seen that slice cut to the rim lip on a lot of whats described Georgian Irish glass, but you could fit on the back of a stamp what i know about Georgian cut glass.

[Paul S.]

hello Dirk ....  claret jugs or ewers - at least those intended for alcohol - were larger .......usually well over 20 cms., and often around 30 cms. in height  ....    so you may well be correct suggesting milk or cream, but unusual shape if it was for that use.       Items for dairy products were often shorter and less classical in design.

Pieces c. 150 years of age or more, frequently suffer wear in certain areas   ......  the points of the relief diamonds and other sticky-out bits, plus wear on the underside of the foot rarely escape some indication of age.       I like the facets on the collar/merese toward the top of the stem  -  for me this is an indication of period.       Think I'm also seeing stones/seeds  -  of which I'm a big fan.      

these pieces can give the most problems on period and origin  -  in the end it's often a gut feeling based on our sixth sense combined with wear etc., and I know very little about Bohemian cut glass, so speaking from a general point of view only, but think there's a good chance this is right.

[dirk.]

Thank you both.
Googling ´Georgian Irish glass´ indeed brought up this piece which bears a certain resemblance to mine:
http://goodglassblog.wordpress.com/tag/voneche-glass/
So perhaps we´re a few decades earlier than I thought.
There is some age-related wear, but because the foot is slightly domed it only shows on the outer tips of
the cut ribs.
Thanks also for clarifying the terms, Paul. Given the special shape of this piece I now wonder - despite of
the small size - if it might have been intended for something more special than cream. Perhaps it was
meant for something that was being served with a drink, so it came as a set with a larger ewer.
But that´s just wild speculation...

[Paul S.]

Reference your link Dirk  .............    always a shame when people don't provide sizes, and because of this omission we're left unsure whether the linked piece was large i.e. c. 30 cms. and actually used for wine/claret  -  or if perhaps it was smaller like yours and described as ewer simply because of its shape.

I had already looked through Phelps Warren - in fact the reference to 'Irish Glass 92c' refers to the author's first effort at his book in 1970 ....   it was improved and re-published in 1981.   
The Duke of Wellington's ewer (referred to as 92c) is c. 31.5 cms. tall, and quite different in cutting style to your piece  -  lucky old D. of W.       Ewers, in the form of classical shapes, show much variety in cutting, and there don't look to be that many in the book with which to make a balanced judgment, unfortunately, and those that are shown don't quite match the cutting on your own piece.
You can debate these things all day and still not be sure, but it might be relevant to say that generally Anglo Irish cut pieces from the Regency period should have good deep cutting  - especially the prismatic cuts.
Your own piece is unusual in that it appears to have scale cutting  -  unusual in that I don't recall seeing ewers and related pieces cut with that form of decoration, from that period.
Larges pieces of Anglo-Irish glass were decorated with  ......    strawberry diamonds, relief diamonds (large and small), prismatic cutting, saw tooth rims, scalloped rims, slice cutting of varying sizes, and even circular printies.
Also, on the majority of Anglo-Irish cut pieces it looks to be that almost the entire body is covered in cutting  -  I say this as yours looks to be a little smooth in the rear quarters   -  might this suggest that yours in not Anglo-Irish, but still the period you are thinking of? 

Might yours be for a single serving of claret at the table perhaps?

Sorry, we're no further forward, and as I say we might debate these things all day and get nowhere - you need an expert.

[dirk.]

Thanks for your detailed answer, Paul, from which I´ve learned a lot already.
So to a fair amount this piece has already paid off in terms of focusing on things which had
escaped my attention so far.
Indeed the back is a bit blank, speaking of cutting...
Mmm, think I´ll just let it rest on my desk for some time and wait if it starts ´speaking´ a little more.

And ´It eats no hay´ like us countrified people here use to say, when we mean to express that - unlike
e.g. a horse or cow - the thing which is meant to stay at our place doesn´t require further needs than
just a little space.