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Glass Discussion & Research. NO IDENTIFICATION REQUESTS here please. => Germany => Topic started by: rocco on July 06, 2013, 04:37:53 PM

Title: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: rocco on July 06, 2013, 04:37:53 PM
I have seen several of these lamps during the last year (different shades of brown as far as I remember).
I nearly bought a brown one some weeks ago which had an interesting label reading "Picking" --> same label as the one in this ebay auction (http://www.ebay.de/itm/19261-Art-Deco-Schale-Walther-Oralit-930-cloud-glass-bowl-brown-Table-lamp-good-/390572899372), which is unfortunately too worn to recognize anything.

But I couldn't refuse this beauty today at the fleamarket despite some chips to the base at 2,- Euro.
Height and diameter of the glass part appr. 19 cm, cloudy pattern of dark blue and purple (two different colours seem a little unusual ???)
Quite thick glass, inside satinated, smooth rim, ground and polished base.

The light fixture is made of brass, and similar to WMF Ikora lamps there is an additional light source within the lamp base.

Glasmanufaktur Picking (according to Pressglas-Korrespondenz) seems to have been a maker.
On the other hand the shape looks identical to the Walther Oralit "Lotus III" vase in this Walther catalogue on pressglas-korrespondenz.de >> Link (http://www.pressglas-korrespondenz.de/archiv/pdf/pk-2009-2w-03-mb-walther-oralit-1932.pdf).
The rim finish would suggest a vase as well...

Any more info highly appreciated as usual!
Thanks,
Michael
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: pamela on July 07, 2013, 07:23:28 PM
Hi Michael, beautiful, and would say yes, Walther ORALIT.
  Picking  (http://www.archiv.sachsen.de/archive/dresden/4464_3131373635.htm) made all sorts of lamps, I would assume that they bought the vase for their production.
A letter head or business card  here  (http://www.glas-musterbuch.de/Glasmanufaktur-Picking-KG-1950.272+B6YmFja1BJRD0yNzImcHJvZHVjdElEPTEyMzM2JnBpZF9wcm9kdWN0PTI3MiZkZXRhaWw9.0.html)

 :D
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: rocco on July 08, 2013, 08:30:48 AM
Pamela, thank you so much for confirming the Walther ID! And for the links -- apart from excerpts of a patternbook on pressglas-korrespondenz, that seems to be the only info available on Glasmanufaktur Picking.

I foundt it rather interesting to see a labeled one, as stickers on lamps are rarely seen...
And as Picking did produce glass themselves, I assumed they were the manufacturer of the lamp bases as well (until I spotted the Walther "Oralit" Lotus vases).

According to the very interesting site cloudglass.com, Walther didn't produce Oralit glass in blue >> Link (http://www.cloudglass.com/Walcat.htm) (and neither have I found any examples online with 2 different colours), so a rather uncommon colourway it seems.
And really attractive :)

Michael

edit to add: the true colours are best seen in the detail pics (3 and 4)
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: dirk. on July 08, 2013, 07:44:09 PM
There was another blue Lotus on ebay some months ago and I´m sure I´ve also seen a ´Hanna´ in blue.   :)
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: rocco on July 09, 2013, 08:21:48 AM
Thanks, Dirk!

So Walther seem to have produced their ORALIT range in even more colours than cloudglass.com states...

Michael
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: pamela on July 09, 2013, 09:03:00 AM
Catalogue Walther ORALIT 1932  colours  (http://www.pressglas-korrespondenz.de/archiv/pdf/pk-2009-2w-03-mb-walther-oralit-1932.pdf) - scroll down to page 3, or 6/14 and 9/14 respectively. Yours is LOTUS III # 31439, I'd say  ;D
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: rocco on July 09, 2013, 11:28:02 AM
Thank you Pamela, the colours on that page of the catalogue looked kind of unrealistic, so I wasn't sure if they referred to actual colourways ;)
Chris and Val Stewart mention even more Walther ORALIT colours on their website:
"...Walther produced their ORALIT range in Amber, Sepia, Violet, Malachit (which we have been calling Topaz-Violet), Pink and Butterscotch Cloud colours..."

I wonder if the blue colourway was always composed of two different cloud colours...

Looked through the original prize list, at 450,- RM (100 pieces) the big LOTUS III was the second most expensive piece of the whole ORALIT range :o
Funny that they are so commonly seen here as lamps.

Michael
Title: Re: Cloud glass lamp, purple and blue, Walther? -- Picking?
Post by: rocco on October 10, 2013, 01:30:55 PM
Another unusual colourway for Walther ORALIT: amber with purple clouds. :)

Michael