Topic: Mystery ID - Magnum Harlequin

[SophieB]

Hi all,

I am posting this query for someone else. Personally, I am stumped (and intrigued) by this magnum size double Harlequin paperweight. I feel it is Scottish (like the second weight in the picture) but I cannot for the life of me name a maker.

As this board has a lot of Scottish glass knowledge and experience, I wonder whether anyone here is able to help clear this mystery (or tell me anything useful about it).

SophieB

PS: The weight in question is the large double Harlequin on the left of the pictures n. 2 and 3. The pictures are not mine but I was authorised to use/post them for ID purposes.

[w8happiness]

Hi Sophie,

I think you are right, both are Scottish, the smaller one is a typical Paul Ysart "Harland" weight (maybe signed with H cane underside or bearing a light blue round PY sticker)-

the bigger is completely consistent with an observation I made, many of Paul Ysart's "double storey" weights he made during his Caithness period may have 4 bubbles in the circumference, all bubbles punched through both layers, and one in the center- only very occasionally a double storey comes up with a 6+1 arrangement of the bubbles.

 The profile and the curve next to the base fit well with Ysart's Caithness harlequin samples, and the colours and aventurine are also totally adequate. The PY base treatment of Caithness time sometimes shows a cord-velvet like rippled shade, otherwise the base is plain and even - but not as accurately polished as in the later "Harland" with perfect clear finish.

I definitely would sort out other sources as Belgium or other continental (they have mostly other numbers of bubbles) or Selkirk, because of profile and bubble distance/angles within the layout.

Kind regards, E. 

[SophieB]

Hi Erhard,

Many thanks for this. Yes the smaller one is definitely a typical PY Harlequin weight from the Harland period (even though it has neither label nor H cane).

For the larger one, I wondered about a possible Paul Ysart origin but I had never seen one of these large double Harlequin/double storey weights from the Caithness period. In fact, I am not sure I have ever seen examples of normal 'single storey' weights from the Caithness period at all. If you had a picture of any such weights, I would love to see it.

Anyway many thanks for this info, it does make a lot of sense to me.

Take care and keep safe.

Sophie

[w8happiness]

Hi Sophie, thanks a lot and please accept my best wishes in return.
Indeed, Paul Ysart made double storey harlequins at Caithness, and Kevin Holt also records earlier examples (back to Moncrieff, even triple...).

I have found that literature (esp. Mahoney) does not explicitely identify Paul's output of harlequins during Caithness time- I do not know why because
in my collection are four single harlequins and of the three doubles, two with millefiori and the one in the side view is a 6-bubble twist decorated one.

The one pictured on the left side is even signed with reversed PY (second version, i.e. Caithness) so the ID is safe and sure. The other is the unsigned 6+1 example showing the "thick" bubble tunnels and the profile at it's best. All are slightly over 3 inches in diameter and ca. 2 1/2 high (estimated).
The Harland doubles made by Paul were almost "bullet"-shaped, not as wide but of same height, and occur, as you say, signed and unsigned...(H-cane).
Please excuse the minimized and combined picture, upload of  file size is very limited...
In case the picture is rejected, it's no problem I can send you the original pictures, of the singles too,

best wishes, Erhard

[KevinH]

I have spent some time investigating the mystery magnum "harlequin" weight.

I have checked with Peter Von Brackel's details in his books on Bohemian etc etc etc weights. I have checked Colin Mahoney's book on PY weights. I have stared hard at my two magnum domed "harleqiun" types (which Colin M refers to as "layered weights"). The mystery weight does not look like any of those others.

I have made some brief investigations towards the work of Peter Holmes. I have revisted the images in the PCC 2013 Exhibition Catalogue for Ysart Family work.

I am still confused. 

I do not think it is from Mainland Europe (or even Russian!). "Harlequin style" 5-bubble weights from Lauscha, Thuringia [lots with 1 central and 4 peripheral bubbles + "bits" of colour] could have been a source - but the mystery item is not really like those.

Having looked at the images via my mobile phone, I eventually returned to the pc where I could see that the details in the weight were certainly most like the Caithness "Harlequin Double" weights - which were not round domed! Those weights had issue dates of 1972 and 1994. The 1994 ones were simply too late for PY work. The 1972 ones were signed with either a CG or PH cane, and were issued at the same time as PY was thinking about - or actually off to - the Harland works.

So who made this mystery item which has features of the Caithness version - and when was it made? Could it be a PY trial weight (pre-1972) for the design, or perhaps an example weight to show others what the general design should look like?

Erhard,
Have you checked your 4+1 Harlequins for BLUE shortwave UV fluorescence to indicate Caithness period of lead-based glass (at the works based in Wick)? I wonder if the weight you show above is actually from the Harland period.

Sophie,
Any chance of a series of photos of the partial / whole cane slices in the weight?

I remain, for now, ... confused

[w8happiness]

Thanks a lot, Kevin,

yes indeed I have separated the Caithness time Paul Ysart crowd of 5 single harlequins and 3 double storey weights by three main criteria:
a) UV shortwave response of all 8 Caithness PY weights is the same, yellow/green not as strong as Moncrieff, but similar- contrary to the Harland weights (tested 1 double, 6 singles) show only a very weak response, a light pink if any...
b) bottom finish: all of the PY Caithness period are polished flat and show, more or less, a "cord velvet" texture (Harlands finishes are perfectly shiny)
c) the profile- I call Paul's Caithness harlequins (single and double) "thick and squatty", the Harland singles are much flatter, the Harland double has a "bullet shape" similar to the fountains of the same period, diameter slightly more than a single but height is +-3 in.
d) of course- there are canes or twists matching to other PY signed work, and bubble number & arrangement considered
 
Maybe you misunderstood, my combined picture is showing both doubles of Paul's production at Caithness, the side view is of the 6+1 bubbler, and other details prove it is clearly not from Harland time.
And, of course I know the harlequins from Caithness after Paul has left, (obviously 2 series, one around 1976 and a limited from 1994)- they are mostly CG signed (in some colour/shape variations of signature) and the decorations rest over a translucent underground, mostly blue, brown, purple etc. and contain only few millefiori slices (if any). 

Yes it would be most helpful if Sophie could present some of the decoration/cane details, closeup of the bottom finish, sideview of the cave and the bubble tunnels,

best wishes, Erhard

[w8happiness]

...one other idea - Strathearn made "Arctic Range Force 2" with two layers, but was it made in Magnum size? I do not have this type, so I refer to Richard More's site, at least the 4 +1 bubbles are there, but- ?- did Strathearn use chunks of aventurine as visible in the mystery weight?

I am still most convinced the mystery weight was made by Paul Ysart, Caithness time, I have a single with a similar speckled decoration and aventurine, albeit over white powder ground, 8+1 bubbles, and the cord velvet polish well visible, UV Matches to the other C-PY's, 

best, Erhard

[KevinH]

Erhard, you said:

... a) UV shortwave response of all 8 Caithness PY weights is the same, yellow/green not as strong as Moncrieff, but similar- contrary to the Harland weights (tested 1 double, 6 singles) show only a very weak response, a light pink if any...

I think your UV light was not shortwave but was longwave (standard "blacklight" rating). Your fluorescence results tie up well enough with Longwave UV results. If it was a Shortwave uv test, the Caithness result would have been a clear Blue.

I will think more about uv results and cross-check some of my own weights against what is stated in books - and also what I stated in my own article. There are differences amongst them and also a "typo" or two which perhaps would benefit from a post set up as a Sticky Topic in this Paperweight Forum.

--------------------------
As for Strathearn Arctic Range Force "n" weights, yes, they are of similar design to the mystery weight and I am glad you mentioned them. I have one example; a "Force 3" and it is unusual as the bubbles are "1 + 3" rather than 1 + 4 of most others. Its colours are Green Blue and White, much the same as Richard's example on the left in this Smugmug page.

I think that, fortunately, the "Arctic Force" weights are all much "cleaner" in their making and their colours than possible Ysart ones. Which is good as otherwise not even UV checks would easily separate them from "Ysart Caithness". The UV results are longwave = Green & shortwave = Blue. (The shades of Green may differ enough, but different lighting can change things, as can people's own eyesight.)

[w8happiness]

...spot on, Kevin- thank you very much: of course it is a moderately priced LONG wave banknote&stamps checklight, I'm aware that for systematics you'd better use both wave lengths to verify doublechecked results.
Other question: during Caithness time, PY still had the Jokelson contracts to fulfill, so there possibly could be PY signed harlequins for US export around-  or were harlequins not part of the contract, just "warm up" or "batch start" examples before he began making a contracted series (and therefore almost all are unsigned...)?

best wishes, Erhard

[w8happiness]

Addendum:

on this website  you find a "sold item"  https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/paul-ysart-bubble-harlequin-251613097

There is the very unusual, almost magnum diameter single layer harlequin of a very similar complexion and layout as the mystery weight.

Much to my frown&grief, it sports  the next anomaly to be cleared- why does it have 6+1 bubbles, I relied on the fact that the
single harlequins ought to have 8+1 as a norm, and only the doubles can come with 4+1 and 6+1... Nothing as regular as the exception??

I hope adding the link is compatible with the Board's regulations, otherwise please check and remove, 

cheers, Erhard