Glass Message Board
Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass => Topic started by: flying free on July 14, 2013, 10:48:22 AM
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I bought this this morning :) very intense bright yellow colour , very opalescent and uranium glass.
It's 3 1/2" long so the small version I believe. I've seen this size advertised as a salt. Is it does anyone know please? The curious thing is that the rd number has been impressed back to front on the base? Is this normal? How would that happen? wouldn't the rd number be part of a mould?
m
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It's not that strange for a reg. no. to be done that way, even when a mould is used. It can be read from inside the thing. :)
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I suppose the back to front issue re the Rd. No., depends on how the mould was made. I always bring to mind the picture in Raymond Slack's book of that ancient looking guy who is shown cutting a mould - but maybe he didn't cut the Rd. No. on that piece. In the same book Slack includes a diagramatic illustration of a mould of a pressed-glass salt cellar - for a swan, c. 1860 - although unfortunately he doesn't give details of whose mould.
I've got three of these small slightly opalescent swans - probably salts - although none carries a Rd. No., so probably more modern C20. Mould lines can be detected/felt down the birds head and neck, but presumably fire-polishing has removed any other seams - fire polishing was a necessity on many of these pressed pieces.
I get the feeling, that of the pressed glass I've seen, the vast majority of Rd. Nos. appear in relief, and the right way round, so back to front I'm sure is in the minority, so presumably there was a specific reason for those few which were back to front.
I seem to recall that the words 'GRACE DARLING' on the stern of the Sowerby boats - whilst on the inside - need to be read from the outside, otherwise they also appear back to front.
The question is were the Nos. created at the time of casting the mould, or might they have been impressed later by the use of hardened steel die stamps.
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sorry, meant to say your swan is a good find, very nice piece by the way :)
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The very bestest of any glass swans, (IMNSHO) ;D
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apologies for the error.............. the GRACE DARLING boat is Rd. 39414, and pressed by Edward Bolton, not Sowerby...........who did do walers but without the legendary motif. :-[
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thanks Sue and Paul :)
The reg number is raised on the base and done in the mould I'm certain. I've just double checked pics of another for sale that's the same small size, and that also has the reg number done this way round - the larger pieces have it the right way round.
I suppose it must have just been the way the moldmaker did it as I can't think of any apparent reason why the smaller ones would deliberately have it the wrong way round. It struck me as curious because the mold of the swan is amazingly detailed and intricately made, so I wondered why the maker would have done it I suppose. She's really pretty, but from a bit of searching it appears I really needed to find the elephant :o
I noticed something when I was photographing the swan, she has beautifully done eyes. So does the elephant. I wonder if it was the same mold maker - clearly a very talented individual with a good eye for detail.
m
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quote................."She's really pretty, but from a bit of searching it appears I really needed to find the elephant".............we'll start a collection for you ;D ;D
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thanks ;D
m
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Found me one, too :D
White version with lovely opalescence. My (by far) oldest piece of glass up to date.
It is 12 cm long, and the Reg. Nr. is impressed the proper way.
Cannot compete with m's Uranium yellow beauty, though :mrgreen:
Michael
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aah, they have such pretty faces don't they? The white opalescent is also beautiful.
m
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Thank you m!
Yes, the detail is really lovely.
I was looking for a nice piece of opalescent glass for my collection for quite some time now; but as a Barolac vase just doesn't come my way, I decided to get this nice fellow :)
Michael
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The Rd and number within a rectangle on the outside bottom of such Swans would be imparted by the bottom plate of the mould during the pressing process (such in raised characters on the inside bottom of a pressed item would be imparted by the plunger). The Rd info. could be on the bottom plate from the first time the mould is used, but it's a simple matter to add it to the bottom plate later on if need be. And, it's possible that there could be two or more different bottom plates. Given the rectangle and the even line of numbers, I'd suspect this was chipped by a skilled mould maker, not done with a die stamp.