Glass Message Board
Glass Discussion & Research. NO IDENTIFICATION REQUESTS here please. => Belgium and the Netherlands Glass => Topic started by: kmax70 on January 24, 2010, 04:59:43 PM
-
I was given this bowl for Christmas and would like to be able to say what it is. It measures approx. 6.5 ins (16.5cm) across by 3.25 ins (8.5cm) deep. The glass is at least 1 cm thick, and there are coloured stripes of blue, green and yellow ribboned through it cased in clear glass. My first thought was early Caithness. The base is also trefoil shaped and is flat with lots of scratches across it.
-
Picture of the base might help,can't say I've ever seen anything like that from Caithness,Czech or Italy maybe,Keith.
-
Picture of base as requested. No etching on it, just a lot of wear scratches. The edges of the base are slightly beveled. The bowl weighs over 1.5 kilos, so it is very chunky glass. The grooves between the lobes suggest an elaborate ashtray. There has obviously been a maker's label attached to the outside of the bowl, but this has unfortunately been removed. KathleenM.
-
Maybe Chinese,see what other members say,
Keith.
-
Thanks, Keith.
-
Beautiful bowl ;D I haven't seen these colours used like this in a Murano piece before, it is like it has just been splashed/drizzled through the glass. The colour combination is good, very appealing. Well to me anyway! I don't think it is Chinese though, in my opinion. Not much else i can add to help with an ID though :spls:
-
My reason for thinking Caithness was that it often has this kind of ribboning through glass, but not in these colours, and perhaps not such heavy, thick glass. I think it is at least vintage age-wise, judging by the scratches on the base. KathleenM.
-
I think it's more likely to be Czech than Murano, Chinese or Caithness. The base is too good for much Chinese stuff and the shape is too odd for Caithness
-
it has not been confirmed - but mine is in the box "Maastricht Verboeket".
-
Many thanks, Ivo - this is identical to mine, as far as I can see. :hiclp: I have looked at the postings you recommended which gives me new links to follow to add to my glass knowledge. Very many thanks.
-
I'm inclined to think it may NOT be Verboeket. Although he used green and cobalt blue together for these sort of 'stretched vases it's normally a darker green than the photo reflects, (I never saw a verified example with the yellow addition), most KU examples ARE marked, and most are derived from 'standard' basic forms which this one doesn't fit, and lastly it has rather too many colour strands for the Maastricht style.
It's only a non-specific and humble opinion though!
-
I have seen an awfy lot of these in Holland. They must have been made in considerable numbers.
-
Ivo, if you're sure it's in the correct box, then I'll take that as (new) information!
BTW do you know the exact usage of the 'Sterglas' label?
-
It was the most logical choice at the time, I'm not sure if I can think of anyone else who produced this type of glass in such numbers. Still, never seen one labeled or even attributed...
-
Dear Ivo,
I don't have real info to add to what I said previously. It does not appear in any literature at my disposal, and IMHO it has variations of colour, number of threads and shape which do not seem to fit with the patterns/styles/ colours of known groups.
Even if there do not seem to be many candidates as manufacturer, that doesn't confirm KU for me!
As per the question above; there is Dutch glass in circulation which bares the mark 'Sterglas -Made in Holland' and it's assumed to be a pseudonym of some sort (and possibly refers to the star on the logo used by KU Maastricht) it seems to be used for items for cash-sale/export (for cash?) which may well have followed a different style/colour/shape guide to the one provided by Verboeket for official KristalUnie products.
In essence what I'm suggesting is some sort of cowboy/improvised production which may have spontaneously arisen (briefly? in protest? secretly?) during the difficult fusion between the factories. I've been shown tall vases in KU colours which are claimed as being produced when they blowers got bored with the 'endless' Etruska and Antiqua production. Certainly there is consistency in colour and technique but they are definitely NOT catalogued in the surviving documentation. (There IS of course a big blackhole in the archive at this point due to the fire damage) I'd love to hear from one of the Maastricht blowers about what happened during the merger-period!
In the meantime we should assume that there may be 'widows and orphans' cluttering up the picture. And this could be an example.
If there are two 'exactly' the same that that seems to indicate it might not be genuine? The whole point of the Kristaluniek production was to create maximum possible diversity within the fixed elements!
-
I could not imagine 'sterglas' as a maker's mark - it is not a likely one.
Of course anything could have happened during the grand faillite of Leerdam, the susequent takeover by the bottleworks, the curiously underdocumented war years and the surreptitious murder of the competition. There is too much uncertainty, too many gaps in the story. Maybe one of these days the whole story will come to light...
-
This label is attached to a Verboeket-style vase which might well share a source with the piece under discussion.
You think it's NOT Dutch?
or you suggest it's a retailer's label??
-
I do not like to speculate. I know nothing of this mark, and it could be a retailer.