Topic: How rare is the Bagley Wyndham trinket set?

[wy699usa]

Hello All,

I have read the book about Bagley glass, and Angela mentioned the trinket set (Bagley Wyndham) is very rare.

Indeed, I cannot find anything like that on the internet, such as eBay, Etsy, etc, not even pieces from the set.

Is the Wyndham trinket set really rare? Why?

Thanks in advance.

[Lustrousstone]

Not that rare; scarce or uncommon perhaps https://www.glasstrinketsets.com/cms3/english/bagley/wyndham-1333

[theElench]

Two reasons I can think of that make pieces of this set hard to find.

First, it simply might not have been as popular when it was being made as other sets on offer.  One reason I collect Art Deco is because I love the shapes of the designs and have quite a few pieces of Bagley (especially those designed by A.H.Williamson) including the Wyndham  vases.  But I've never bothered with the trinket set because, to me, it isn't "Deco enough". 

Compared to other sets available at the time some people felt the same, some loved Art Deco, others didn't like the style at all.  If they were looking for Art Deco many might have passed over the Wyndham in favour of something else, more modern-looking 

If they weren't into what, at the time, was possibly regarded as a bit weird, they possibly didn't even look at Bagley.  Think of how easy it is to find pieces of Davidson "Cloud Glass", made from the 20's - 50's.  Many of which are from their 1902, 1907 and 1910 designs  --  all pre-Deco and semi-classical.

Secondly, after years of scouring ebay and etsy I've come to realise that they are to some extent, self-contained.  All too often for sellers on those sites, they are also their main research and reference sources.  A less common and unrecognised piece will, all too often, continue to be unrecognised because no-one bothers to look any further.

I have seen, but not that often, pieces of the Wynham set on ebay, rarely attributed.  From memory, the candlesticks come up more often than the other pieces and then usually as singles.

Again from memory (which may be faulty) I seem to remember reading that the only really rare piece, sometimes seen with this set is either an ashtray or cigarette-box.  In either case it was probably said to be a rare piece of Bagley and possibly originally nothing to do with the set.

It's quite likely that I read that on GMB.     

[theElench]

Couldn't remember when I logged-in, so to continue...

There is an immense amount of knowledge contained in the older threads on GMB and it is well worth searching through the threads that are archived.  Just as I was collecting Art Deco long before I was aware that the style was called Art Deco, I was also completely un-aware that many pieces of glass I'd collected were Bagley and that many of those I found particularly attractive were all designed by Williamson.

While ID. reference sites are indispensable, especially for beginners.  (I count myself as such before I found GMB, as although I had collected for years, I knew next to nothing about my collection other than I liked what I had).  Discovering the sources of those ID's, the detective work and discussions that went into their acceptance I'm sure will add to your interest in glass as much as it did mine.

I'd also recommend making use of the archive because sadly, as I mention above, as time goes on and the sheer amount of information on GMB grows, memory cannot possibly hold it all.  Even the resident experts who have worked so hard and so long sharing their knowledge with everyone who comes here can't be expected to remember every detail of thousands of discussions, some of which have been going on almost since GMB first started.

Looking back at older parts of a conversation has sometimes led me facts, theories or opinions now forgotten, but still of interest in the light of more recent additions.  It will all add to a greater understanding and appreciation of the subject.

[wy699usa]

Many thanks for all the advice. I agreed that it likely was not as popular as the other sets, therefore, fewer sets were produced back in the 1930s. That is just my guess.

I did check the archive on GMB:

https://www.glassmessages.com/index.php?topic=54362.0

I also read Angela's book about Bagley Glass. She did mention the frosted green colour Wyndham trinket set was rare to find.

Indeed, these days people are not wasting time to investigate their items on Etsy or Ebay.

[theElench]

Glad to see that you've already found the archive!!

If Angela has said that it's hard to find Wyndham in frosted green I'm certainly not going to dispute that, she has far more knowledge about Bagley than I do.  All I would add is that it's worth taking into account the vagaries of different searches and the results they give, especially on ebay.

I recently bought a clear blue Wyndham vase (the thin square type).  It took me a while to find one as ebay usually showed me frosted green if I searched "Wyndham Vase" (thinking it would show all on offer).  I thought blue was a "difficult to find" colour.  Now if I do the same search I'm sure it's no co-incidence that suddenly there are plenty of blue ones for sale.  Another lesson learned which will hopefully help when I get round to searching for another clear Amber to make a pair with the apparently "rare" one I have.

Having said all that, some colours are definitely more difficult to find for some designs even though it is very common for others. 

[NevB]

Funnily enough I've just found a pair of the candlesticks on sale in America and described as Victorian around 1860 .

[wy699usa]

Do you mind to share the link so that I can take a look? Thanks.

[NevB]

Sorry, I messaged the seller and the item seems to have been removed.

[theElench]

I've just been reading the ebay.uk boards and there seems to be some confusion about import tariffs, VAT etc because of the Brexit agreement.  Perhaps that's why the candlesticks have been removed?