Topic: Cut Glass Decanter-unmarked-ID help please

[Scott13]

Hi,
Really nice decanter, pity about the crack though. Don't normally buy damaged items but as I got it for next to nothing ................
Anyway it will be added to my collection (2) of rejects 

Cut glass- unmarked
The rings look as if they've been applied.
Quite a large polished pontil mark
Quite a bit of base wear
Solid stopper

H-27 cms
W-1250 gms

Any help in establishing an identity would be great
Many thanks for looking   

Scott

[Paul S.]

hello Scott  -  pity about the crack - otherwise would have been a usable piece.                  I don't see anything particularly special regret to say, and period pieces with applied neck rings tend to have two or three equally spaced, not in the style as here.

You don't mention matching Nos., but if they are present then unlikely your bottle is old.                Decanters exist in their zillions as you'll know, and this doesn't make me think of anything early or a particular factory  -  the glass appears too white and clear for that.
I will have a look in McConnell for you in the next day or two, but don't hold your breath.

[Scott13]

Hi Paul, thanks for your reply.

Matching nos? If you mean the nos sometimes found on stoppers/body-then they aren't present.
My gut feeling is that it's probably ( based on general wear and tear ) from the 50s/60s- but of course I'm just guessing.

If you're surprised that I'm now buying damaged pieces - well, I'm just trying to make my money go a long way! 
Many thanks for looking

Scott

[Paul S.]

hi Scott  -   providing matching Nos. on decanters I believe is really a C20 practise, and even then they're applied it appears to quality items only, and yes, I did mean those found on the stub of stopper and neck of bottle.             It's easy to forget that the GMB is populated by folk from across the globe, and unconsciously I tend to make comments relating to U.K. glass, forgetting that practises differ depending on where people are.
Matching Nos. may well not apply everywhere  -  haven't a clue where your piece was made  -  easy to assume it was made in the country where it was found, but that's just guessing.
An issue with bottles is that so often when I find a decent one, the stopper isn't original, which disappoints, but that's life.
You're probably not too far wrong with your suggested date.

The down side the Andy McConnell's book is that it gives scant cover to C20 bottles  -  someone on the Board did say last year I think, that Andy was producing a revised volume to partly rectify that - but I don't have further details on that at the moment.

[Scott13]

Hi, thanks for the info.
One thing I forgot to mention was that both the stopper and neck had been ground ( fairly roughly) but not polished - presumably to get a right fit.
Can this be regarded as generally a 20th cent practice ?

Scott

[Paul S.]

not especially Scott  -  my opinion would be that this probably indicates a bottle of lesser quality - it takes extra time to polish, so they've saved time in leaving a rough finish only.
Alternatively, it might indicate a replacement stopper, but with a lack of matching Nos. you'll never be sure of this.        Correct stoppers should never wobble.

[Scott13]

Hi,the stopper seems to fit well, but I can't say I'm particularly impressed by the cutting- so probably one of indifferent quality. It makes sense
Thanks 

Scott