Glass Message Board
Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass Paperweights => Topic started by: BobKegeles on August 08, 2014, 12:28:56 AM
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Here's a cool Caithness Millefiori piece from '88.
It's a largish size 3" across x 2" high, and faceted.
It isn't signed, but does have a transparent plastic Caithness label, and a date cane. The date cane says 1988, but there are also three "0", does that mean anything, or is it simply spacers to complete the circle of the date.
What's kind of cool, is the lampwork pipe, including a wisp of smoke.
Tobacco pipe smoking has pretty much disappeared here in the states, it had a resurgence in the 70's,as cigarette smokers tried to cross over to pipes, to lessen cancer risk. Then of course it turned out that there were very strong links to lip and tongue cancers from pipe smoking.
Does anyone recognize it? Does it have a name? Does anyone know who designed it?
Calling Wolf, here Wolfie, here boy, I have a nice tender lamb for you as a treat, LOL.
Bob
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Hi Bob. It is a well known design to commemorate the Sherlock Holmes centenary of first publication. There is already a thread on GMB about this design, which was a Caithness Whitefriars product, commissioned by a US wholesaler in 1987. The thread gives more information about it.
See: http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,32047.msg173136.html#msg173136 (http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,32047.msg173136.html#msg173136)
Alan
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Thanks Alan,
Between the thread tells me all I need to know, but one question comes up.
I'm assuming the date cane 1988 means it was produced in 1988, but it's featured in the 1987 Reflections.
While I'm guessing the 1987 Reflections would have been published in early 1988, it still would have been to early to feature an item produced in 1988.
Does the date on the cane then refer to the "marketing year" in other words, though the actual production was '87, it was marketed for, and sold in '88, so has an 1988 date?
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Hi Bob. I have seen examples with both year dates in the base....so I guess they started in 1987, and made some as required through into 1988.
Alan
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I've seen a few of these and always wondered what they were. I thought they were peppers that cracked in half during the making :P Now I know better!
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I have to say, glancing at it a few times, I didn't recognize the pipe. Then I put down, just happened to be in the correct orientation, and it jumped into my head.
I may have seen it, reasonably quickly since I smoked a pipe in my college years, in the mid '70s.
Though I have to admit, I'm embarrassed to not have identified Sherlock's pipe, it is very distinctive.
I was a Sherlock addict in my teens, even so far as to have a collection of deer stalker caps, that my Mom and Dad picked up for me on a visit to my Mom's ancestral homeland Scotland. I had 7, so I wore a different one every day to High School, as well as a black wool cape, with red satin lining. As you may guess, I was NOT the most popular kid in High School.
Scariest of all, this is my yearbook photo from 1975.
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May not have been the most popular but I bet you were the most well known!! The yearbook pic is a classic, for sure.
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I have seen examples with both year dates in the base....so I guess they started in 1987, and made some as required through into 1988.
I can confirm this - I have images of this weight with a 1987 cane in the queue for Scotland's Glass.
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out of curiosity, since this was a commissioned piece, would the commissioner, (in this case the US wholesaler) have designed what they want? Or is it more likely that he simply said, give me a Sherlockian w8, and Allan Scott took it from there.
I'm guessing it probably varied depending on the piece, a business that commissioned one for their business, would probably have , at least, sent initial sketches of what they wanted. And then the Caithness designer would have designed the w8, and then sent a schematic and/or drrawing back for approval.
In this case, I'm guessing the wholesaler said, give me a pipe, and then Allan did the design, with back and forths, revising and polishing, until both were happy.
Idle curiosity.
Bob
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Hi Bob. Allan Scott sometimes contributes to this board, so maybe he will give you the answer?
Alan
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I hope he's ok, when looking at the prior thread about this weight, I saw his response, that he and Rosette had created the lampwork. While trying to figure out which of the many Allans and Alans he was, I noticed, he hadn't posted since 2012.
That's assuming he didn't re-register under a different user name, like Allan Scott for example.
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Hi,
I am happy to report that I am alive and well, I have just been very busy with various things at work and unfortunately having to deal with a lot legal stuff after my Mum died. I am always happy to help anyone that has any queries about paperweights.
The Sherlock pipe design was indeed determined by the company who commissioned it, just letting our design studio come up with an idea. If I remember correctly, it was actually Colin Terris who decided on the final design.
Hope this helps
Allan
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Great that you're doing well!
When a regular diisapears, I do tend to worry lol. Glad I was being silly this time. : )
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Hi all, Just been catching up on posts missed and this post took me back to one of my post regarding this particular paperweight. I am assuming the thread below is the post you were referring to Bob. If it is, I can certainly rule out my paperweight being an unfaceted second and the lampwork done by Willie Manson ;D.
Firstly, please accept my condolances Allan. With reference to your comments, here is the link below that provides interesting reading for those that would like to know about Colin Terris.
Does anyone have any idea on how many were made? Just curious to know, as I only have seen two so far.
1. http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,32047.msg173291.html#msg173291
2. http://www.theglassmuseum.com/terris.htm
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Hey Otis,
Here's what I ended up writing for my EBAY listing, selling the piece. Cribbed together from several threads, and several responders.
"This beautiful Caithness Glass Sherlock Holmes centennial commemorative millefiori and lampwork faceted paperweight, designed by Allan Scott and Rosette Fleming in 1987, features a brilliant lampwork Calabash Meerschaum pipe, (Sherlock's iconic pipe), complete with a wisp of smoke.
The pipe is surrounded by four concentric rings of tiny millefiori, (produced on contract, by John Deacons), laid on a lovely translucent blue ground, and finished with six perimeter facets, as well as a large top facet.
This piece was commissioned in 1987, by an American wholesaler, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the publication of A. Conan Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes novel.
While it does not have an etched signature, it does have a transparent Caithness Glass label on the bottom. The bottom also features a fantastic signature J date cane, denoting that the canes were produced by John Deacons.
A fantastic gift for a Sherlock Holmes fan, or simply to add to your Caithness Glass or Sherlockian collection."
Bob
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The bottom also features a fantastic signature J date cane, denoting that the canes were produced by John Deacons.
Are you sure it is a "J" date cane (you don't show it in the auction) and not a "Whitefriars (http://www.rubylane.com/item/623546-6146/Caithness-Whitefriars-Sherlock-Holmes-Paperweight)" date cane (which I find on images in my collection)?
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I believe it was my comments elsewhere that gave the info about JD making canes on contract for Caithness Glass.
However, there would not have been any reason for a JD-type "J" cane to have been included in a Caithness weight - with or without the type of canes that JD made for them.
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Wuff, am I misreading this date cane? When someone, on one of the threads, said that John Deacons was making the canes at the time, I took the line in the center of the date cane to be a "J". Did I goof?
As to "am I sure", god no, every time I'm sure about anything, it seems to end up that I'm wrong. LOL
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Hi Bob. That is not a J Glass 'J' cane - it is the (very) stylised Whitefriars monk symbol, used by Caithness after they bought the rights to use the Whitefriars name.
Alan
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Bob, my comment and yours seemed to have crossed in the virtual ether. See above.
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Hi Bob, thank you for your info. I don't think I will be in too much of a hurry to sell my paperweight right now, however, will of course retain your well executed description when I do get round to selling mine :).
Does anyone have any idea how many of these were made?
Allan mentions that Colin Terris made the decision on the final design. I am assuming what is meant by this and please correct me if I am wrong, is the design within the weight itself. If so, would it be correct to say they were only two distinguishable shapes, one of them being the facet cut or were there other shapes of weights with the Sherlock meerschaum pipe design?
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I've corrected my listing to remove the reference to a John Deacons J cane, and instead reference the Whitefriars Monk date cane instead. Thanks all for the correction!
Bob