Topic: Antique English Silvered Mercury Glass

[Diane Lytwyn]

Here is the article I wrote for the magazine entitled "The Brilliance of English Silvered Glass"

http://www.antiquemercuryglass.com/files/English_Silvered_Mercury_Glass.pdf

[chopin-liszt]

  Hello and welcome.
Thank-you so much for taking the trouble to join and give us this lovely and beautifully illustrated article.
It is very much appreciated.
I hope you'll hang around and join in the talk too. You may have noticed there is a very long discusssion about Varnish Mercury glass here.

[Diane Lytwyn]

Thank you! I'm always willing and eager to discuss my favorite glass!  Diane

[chopin-liszt]

Did you find the thread?
It's here, and there is a lot to read, perhaps you might be able get stuck in and help. 
http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,65670.0.html

[flying free]

Hi Diane

Thank you for posting your article and welcome 

There is another thread running about Thomson's silvered glass as Sue has mentioned.  I've posted quite a lot of information on that thread and  I have a couple of questions.

There doesn't seem to be any back up source evidence available to view, or in the books (numerous titles looked at, but not exhaustive), that Powell and Sons Whitefriars definitely made the larger glass 'double-walled blown and coloured cased items'.

There is some evidence from the court case that they may have made an inkwell, although  that is unsubstantiated in the court case.   

And there is evidence that Thomson said Mellish was hired to go to Powell's to oversee items being made. But it doesn't say which items. 

It does seem that some of the items (created to be double walled by making an inset for them, rather than blown as double-walled it appears) were Bohemian glass. 



I have found that there was an article published a few years (perhaps two ?)ago.  I cannot now re-find where I read this but wondered if you knew about it?  Might it contain evidence of which items were blown at Powell's is what I wondered?

Any help is much appreciated.

m

[KevinH]

And a welcome from me too, especially as I also have an interest in the massive thread that Sue and m have mentioned.

I will add a link to this thread from the other one.

[fatbelly]

I really enjoyed reading your article too.
Never realised just how beautiful some of the pieces are.
Thank you for sharing.
FB

[Diane Lytwyn]

I have collected mercury glass for about 45 years. My first piece was a plain flint blown silvered master salt likely made at Boston & Sandwich Glass Co. circa 1855. My collection grew by bits and pieces, whilst the information that was available was very confusing, especially the statements that mercury glass was "lightweight."

I uploaded a pair of Bohemian goblets, gold lined, with a granulate crystal application that looks like etching.

The English pieces are extremely heavy, as are the American made examples. Bohemia produced silvered glass but used a light soda lime formula so, indeed, those pieces ARE more light weight.

But the English made the best silvered glass, hands down. I have some nice pieces in my collection, some Varnish & CO. London, and some others Thomson, London.

I look forward to further discussion!

[Diane Lytwyn]

Here is my web site: www.antiquemercuryglass.com

Enjoy!

[flying free]

Hi Diane

Thank you for the links.

I think the query I have come up to on the other lengthy thread, is whether or not the Thomson and the Varnish marked blown-double-walled items were in fact blown in England?

If they were then which factory blew the glass?

There are some marked Varnish pieces that I believe are Bohemian glass. I don't mean the comparatively lighter weight later(? post 1851 version of )Bohemian silvered glass of which I own a few pieces,  but it seems Thomson silvered Bohemian glass items that were cut and heavy earlier than 1850 pieces.


m