Topic: Large Black Glass Panels marked A. Hunnebelle, Paris

[heavyd]

Hello all!!  I just happened across this forum and I thought this would be a good place to get some information on some glass pieces I have. I did a few searches but came up empty.

I have a set of 3 large black glass panels (they are at least 3 foot by 5 foot each at least 1/2 inch thick and HEAVY) with images carved into them. One of them is a fish, one is a weeping willow tree and I can't remember what the other is. I have the panels wrapped up in storage and I haven't looked at them in quite a while. The panels are marked A. Hunnebelle, Paris. I have researched Hunnebelle a little, but I have only seen vases and bowls, nothing nearly the size of my panels. Does anyone know of any other pieces like these? Do they have any value?  I will have to go to where the panels are stored to take some pictures to post. I was going to fabricate some Stainless Steel frames for them and hang them on my walls, but I haven't gotten around to it.  Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[Frank]

It all depends when they were made and what the designs are like... etched, cut or other. Would need some pics.

[B & M]

Panels by Hunebelle would certainly be valuable though it is difficult to say how much so without seeing them. In fact, they sound a very interesting discovery; I have personally never seen architectural panels by Hunebelle during the time I have been collecting. It would be fascinating to find out where they were originally installed.

The panels will almost certainly be moulded/ cast if they are Hunebelle. Production would be between about 1927 and 1938. The use of black glass sounds unusual as well. Most Hunebelle production I have seen has been in opal or colourless glass.

The only book on Hunebelle I am aware of is Benazet's 'Andre Hunebelle Maitre Verrier', published in France in January of this year. i still haven't been able to get my hands on a copy yet, though it may provide more information regarding your items.

Steven

[heavyd]

I will post some pics as soon as I can get to the panels. They really are quite interesting to look at. The glass is mostly black, but there are grey/silver highlights throughout the panels and the negative areas of the images are dull and rough, almost as if they were sandblasted. The only reason I have them is because they were going to be thrown in a dumpster when the company I worked for closed up shop. They had been found behind a wall in the building where the shop had been located years ago. When they moved to the new building, the panels got moved with all of the glass table tops. They sat on the scrap glass rack for years untill we emptied out the building.

[Pinkspoons]

Scrap glass rack? What kind of company was it? It might help explain why these curious panels exist if it's something glass related. A specially commissioned piece, or am unusual commercial sample, for example.

[heavyd]

It was a custom metal furniture shop. I have no idea what was in the original building before hand. As i said, the panels were found in that building behind a wall. The scrap glass rack in our shop was for glass tops that were ordered wrong or had imperfections in them. When the company closed down, all of the scrap glass went in the trash. I kept the panels because they were too nice to trash and I thought they would look nice on my walls. The only thing I have found in my research that is remotely close to what I have is Vitrolite which was a popular architectural glass from the 30's.

[Ohio]

I'll take a shot since I have seen these large black amethyst panels before. Probably a decade ago I ran into a dealer who had four of these same type of panels & they were from a demolition project of an old bank built around 1910 in Cleveland Ohio. It was a four story building & had two elevators & on each side of the elevators were two panels. Originally they demolition/salvage operator thought they were marble, but when they removed them they found they were glass so they had no iterest in them. He picked them up for $200 & a week after I saw them he sold them to a guy who was rehabing a large 14 room house & he was going to use two of them in the entrance hall & two to frame a large fireplace. He got $1,000 out of them. I remember two of them had greek goddess forms & one was horses & the other had large fish. At the time I thought they were extraordinary pieces, but at $1,000 & with no plan on what I'd do with them I passed. I'll bet these are the same type of panels. Ken

[Sklounion]

Hi,
The architectural use of black Vitrolite panels, with engraved or sandblasted decoration, was relatively common in the 1930's, both for large-scale projects, and smaller commissioned works for domestic interiors.
Panels of this type were also used in the outfitting of some new trans-atlantic liners, and vessels on the UK-South Africa-Australian routes.

Certainly examples are to be found in the "Studio" year-books of that period.

Regards,

Marcus

[Jo in Australia]

The panels sound wonderful!
I recall reading somewhere that Hunebelle did do designs for one of the big ocean liners, although I don't remember which one/s.
His designs were sometimes done in black and I've also seen a dark charcoal grey colour.

[heavyd]

It has been a long time sice I have posted, but I finally have pics of the panels. The fish panel is about 2 feet tall by 6 feet long. The other 2 are approx. 2 1/2 feet tall by 5 feet long. All 3 panels are signed A. Hunebelle Paris as well as (E or L) Parisio. I am going to contact Tim Dunn, the Vitrolite guru to see what he thinks of them.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/tallicamom/panel3a.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/tallicamom/panel1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/tallicamom/panel2a.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/tallicamom/xmas07073.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/tallicamom/xmas07074.jpg