Topic: Info on James Powell Topaz glass - "The Queen Victoria Topaz bowl"

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Thanks Tim.
I'll wait for post today and then contact Maurice to see whether I need to update subs 

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Awaiting my copies which should arrive soon.

In the meantime two things:
1.
An article describing production of uranium glass in Bohemia early 1800s, mentions Neuwelt producing in 1839 and showing examples c.1840
https://www.pressglas-korrespondenz.de/aktuelles/pdf/brozova-uranglas.pdf

Source: Pressglas-korrespondenz 02/2000  Dr. Jarmila Brožová
It talks about how uranium glass started being produced at the end of the 1830s in England and Lorraine

2. Also:
Giving a fuller description of the V&A bowl from their site
https://www.vam.ac.uk/blog/museum-life/seeing-more-glow-in-the-dark-glass

'(Left) Finger bowl, Longport, 1837, made by Davenport & Co., uranium yellow glass, cut and engraved, Museum no. C.110-1992, photographed under LED light © Victoria and Albert Museum. (Right) Finger bowl, photographed under UV light © Aimee Lax, 2020'
And
'The first object is a finger bowl from the early 19th century, an example of the first uranium glass to be produced in Britain. The first use of uranium oxide in glass manufacturing is credited to Josef Riedel, who developed it in 1834, at his glassworks in the Isergebirge, Austria. This finger bowl, as part of a service of 6,000 pieces, was designed not long after in 1837. Made by the firm Davenport & Co., the service was commissioned by the Corporation of the City of London, for a banquet at the Guildhall to celebrate the accession of Queen Victoria.'

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With reference the engraved crown on the bowl and on the clear glass plate:

Some information re-printed in 1878 about Longports/Davenport (I've found similar information appeared in earlier publications so I'm not sure when it was first printed or written about)- it's all about the pottery with a mere glancing mention of their producing glass in one sentence.
See pages 283 - 286
History of Ceramic Art in Great Britain volume 2 , Llewellyn Jewitt, 1878.

https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_History_of_Ceramic_Art_in_Great_Brit/HNtKAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=davenport+china+hamburg&pg=PA285&printsec=frontcover

However there is mention of the marks they used on their pottery or china.
One of those is a crown mark that I think is very similar to the crown engraved on the bowl and plate.
Of the crown mark used by Davenports the author says :
Page 286
' The marks used by Messrs.Davenport have been various, but almost in every instance the anchor has been the distinguishing characteristic; it is the trademark of the firm.  The crown was first used by them, on the Royal Service for William IV., and is now generally used on porcelain services. Figs 429 to 436 are impressed marks.'


My note - the crown mark that looks very similar to that used on the bowl and plate appears in this book as Fig 436.


More information here on Davenport's but not much/any on their glassworks.
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/db071d3e-e56e-48f6-914e-fd7e66d751ed

 

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Here are some examples of Davenport glass sold by Bonhams in 2005.  They were sold in the Joyce Mountain Davenport collection which was massive - about 144 lots of sets of china and some glass pieces (not many):


https://images1.bonhams.com/image?src=Images/live/2005-07/25/94291032-198-1.jpg

https://www.lotsearch.net/lot/three-davenport-patent-glass-items-39846061?page=10&orderBy=lot-title&order=ASC

The one with an image of Victoria on and the word Victoria engraved/etched on it is interesting.  The dates given for the three items are 1806-1840.
They bear no resemblance whatsoever to the uranium glass bowl in the V&A.

This bowl dated as c.1820 is cut but clear glass:
https://www.lotsearch.net/lot/a-davenport-cut-glass-pedestal-bowl-39846062?page=6

There was nothing else like the bowl though.
https://www.lotsearch.net/auction-catalogues/the-joyce-mountain-collection-of-davenport-pottery-porcelain-and-glass-117694?page=12

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In The Decanter, McConnell mentions the uranium-yellow bowls, he says ‘...Whitefriars producing a suite of uranium-yellow rinsers for Victoria’s coronation banquet at the guildhall in 1837’. He calls them rinsers but assume he’s talking about the same thing. He goes on to say that Queen Adelaide (wife of William IV) was presented with a pair of “similarly coloured girandole candlesticks whilst visiting Birmingham in the 1830’s”. Maybe you could find the source of that reference to the candlesticks for corroboration?

In the Glass Matters magazine June 2021 there is an article by John Frith that references these candlesticks again saying they were made by by James Powell & Sons '...when they made a pair of yellow uranium Topaz girandoles that were presented to Queen Adelaide'.
The source he gives is a reference to Barrie Skelcher's book  (his note 4. - Skelcher, Barrie. (2002) The Big Book of Vaseline Glass. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing Ltd, 2002, p.12-16.), and references page 13. 

He  doesn't formally quote Skelcher though, so I've no idea how the phrasing was actually written in Skelcher's book.
And I don't have Barrie Skelcher's book so I don't know what the source was for Barrie Skelcher's information.

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Candelabra gift!  - Except it's all made of silver and the only glass is a mirrored underplate thing that the candelabra stand on. 
Question - is this the legendary candelabra with topaz drops referred to as having been given by Lord Howe to Queen Adelaide?  Or were there even more candelabra gifts with topaz?  This garniture has no topaz drops as far as I can see 

Earl Howe and Queen Adelaide

Source:  (I'm fully quoting from this site - I hope that's ok mods?)

https://www.millionplus.com/luxury-market/rare-scarce/antiques/queen-adelaide-garniture-de-table/


quote  (my bold) :

- 1839-40 and 1852 (my note: I presume the 1852 denotes the extra piece added after her death (see description below)

– with marks for R and S Garrard and
R and S Garrard and Co.
– The Surtout: 318 x 70 cm
– The candelabra: 121 x 84 cm

'Comprising a large silver mounted mirror plateau, in four sections with two extra end sections, the boarder cast and chased and applied with vines and scrolls on massive scroll supports, embellished with the arms and supporters and cypher of Queen Adelaide a pair of matching seven-light candelabra with conforming trails of chased vine leaves and the cypher for Queen Adelaide and a ten light candelabrum with the arms of Curzon-Howe impaling Gore for 1st Earl Howe, on a massive scrolled oval base with coats of arms centered by a fountain. Including five oak and iron bound cases with brass labels engraved for queen Adelaide and Earl Howe.

This Exceptional gift was made shortly after a tour she made of the English provinces in the autumn of 1839. It was at that time that she visited Earl Howe at Gopsall Hall in Leicestershire as well as the Earl of Warwick at Warwick Castle the Duke of Rutland at Belvoir Castle and the conservative Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel at at Draycott Manor. It may have graced the table at any of the Earl's residences, which include Curzon House in South Audley Street., Penn House Near Amersham or Gopsall or indeed all of them as the stout cases would allow for easy transportation. The Earls addition of a further candelabrum was made after the Queens death adding to the Splendor of an already distinguished piece.

This wonderful work of art was sold by the family on the 6th of December at Christie's in London in 1933 and has not often appeared on the market since. It is an extraordinary testament to the Generosity of a Queen, the Loyalty of a servant and the skills of great craftsmen and represents a rare opportunity to acquire such a piece.'

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Tim, a question re your posts on the first page of this thread:

'M, there is a little bit more about the James Powell topaz glass in the big Whitefriars book.
Whitefriars glass,James Powell & sons of London.
Have you got the info you need or should i add some more to your post?
Tim'

and

In the glasshouse recipe book covering 1831to 1838 it records some trials of various colouring oxides.
One of these trials was with oxide of uranium which produced a spectacular yellow which Powells called topaz.
Powells made some silver mounted candlesticks with prismatic drops given by lord Howe to queen Adelaide in topaz in 1836.
In the banquet given by the corporation of London for queen Victoria in 1837 there were 12 finger bowls and the bowls of twenty four hock glasses.
Dont know why Charles Hajdamach would not have attributed the images, he is a very knowledgeable expert.
Tim

question is, is the book you are paraphrasing/referencing from here - is it the  Whitefriars Glass: James Powell and Sons book, the one published by the Museum of London?

Just wondering because the link I originally gave to the bowl that said it was by James Powell & Sons was a link to the Museum of London. 
Then the link disappeared. 
But I managed to find it referenced to the Museum of London on this memoryprints site:
http://www.memoryprints.com/image/142383/james-powell-and-sons-whitefriars-ltd-finger-bowl-in-topaz-glass-1837



And of course we now know the bowl is at the V&A with their information saying it was made at Davenports.


So I wonder if Barrie Skelcher's information in the Big Book of Vaseline Glass published 2002 maybe came from the Museum of London information or that Whitefriars Glass:  James Powell & Sons book from the Museum of London which was published in 1995?

Obviously the information in that book regarding this particular bowl now seems to have been surpassed by the new information from the V&A saying the bowl was made by Davenports.


If this is the case then I think the question of James Powell and Sons making this uranium glass bowl might be questioned as it may have stemmed from that book information perhaps.

Which leaves the question -  If this bowl was indeed presented/used at the Guild banquet, were Davenports  making uranium glass in 1837?

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I also wonder when James Powell and sons first started making uranium glass.
If the date of the 1830s has been talked about based on this bowl being categorised by Museum of London as from James Powell & Sons, and it no longer is deemed to be by them, then perhaps any talk of them making uranium glass in the 1830s has no reference?

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Page 217 of this book Men of the Reign dated 1885 discusses John Davenport and says in 1801 they:
 
'introduced the manufacture of flint glass, or crystal, for the ornamenting and cutting of which they invented machinery. They also produced some remarkable specimens of stained glass, the best perhaps being the window of St Mark's Church, Liverpool'

https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Men_of_the_Reign/8-dFAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=davenport++glass+queen+victoria&pg=PA247&printsec=frontcover

I've looked up St Mark's church and there is some history here of it being built and including it's early history.  No mention of the stained glass window though, despite a rather  detailed but unflattering description of the Church and it's design:
https://liverpool1207blog.wordpress.com/long-lost-buildings/st-marks-church-upper-duke-st/

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It's only a 'snippet' view on google and I don't have the journal, but it seems to say in the Journal of Glass Studies 1995 that Davenport assembled 6000 pieces within 4 weeks of receiving the order from City of London.  I'm noting the use of the word 'assembled' rather than the word 'produced'.

'FOUND INSIDE – PAGE 140
Uranium , or Uranite , was discovered in 1780 by Klaproth , in a mineral called pech blend ( pitchblende ) : it has been since ... more than 6,000 pieces ( predominantly of plain flint glass ) that was assembled by Davenport within four weeks of receiving the order from the Corporation of the City of London.3 The service was for use at the Guildhall banquet given for Queen Victoria on her accession in 1837.'