Early FREE BLOWN GLASS Any Help??

[ladyp3797]

Hey there evryone,
Just bought this decantur today, and I would really like to try and date it. From my own research, I thought it might be between 1845 and 1870. Looks like there is graphite residue on the pontil. I think the pink ring was added after the bottle, It's really neat stopper had a pink decorative piece added to it as well. The stopper's color is much more clear, than the decantur. The decantur is more of a pink or amethyst. There is moisture inside the decantur, I was to excited to wait for it to dry. Any help would be appreciated. I am learning so much with you're help & books, I am feeling more confident in my finding and identifing skills.[] I almost forgot, the circular base, is very uneven, not sure if you can tell from the pic.s.

[][]

 

[Harry Pristis]

Hey, ladyp . . .

Add an ounce of rubbing alcohol to the bottle, slosh it around to pick up the water drops, pour it out. The residual alcohol will dry a whole lot faster and cleaner than the water.

I can tell you there is no graphite associated with the pontil scar. The dark speck may be iron oxide from the pontil rod.

Why do you think that this decanter is old?

-------------Harry Pristis

 

[ladyp3797]

Hi Harry,

Thanks very much for your reply. My first thought on the pontil was that it was iron oxide, but after reading more about free blown glass, I thought it was graphite. My mistake is again, from inexperience, and I really appreciate your input.

As far as being old, I bought the decantur at an estate auction. That doesn't guaranty age,of course, but we do know the auctioneer's well enough to trust them, to not be misleading. It was part of an estate with lots of old signed glass.

The diffenece in the glass color, the stopper is much clearer, leads me to believe that the decanture glass could have possible started out a different color. My husband and I have a pair of very heavy clear glass ash trays that are from the 1920's. One is much more straw colored than the other. They came from the same estate, we bought them at the same time, and the straw colored one started out as a slightly noticeable tinge, and now, over time and sun exposure, it is an easily notable difference.

Could that be the same type of occurance between the stopper and the container?

Lady P

 

[ladyp3797]

Harry,
I forgot to thank you for the alcohol tip, it makes perfect sense! thanks! []
LP

 

[Harry Pristis]

Hello, LP . . .

It is tricky business, dating a unique piece like this.

There are some premises we should agree upon:

>Auctioneers are rarely bottle experts.

>An estate (as in estate sale) often contains a mix of old and new things.

>This bottle was not made to function as a decanter since the stopper is not ground (from the pix). Anything alocoholic - spirits, toilet water, cologne - would evaporate over time.

>Manganese was used as a clarifier of utility bottles from about 1880 to 1915 (but has been available again between wars and is available now) if that is the source of the coloring of the glass in the bottle.

>If the stopper is a different color than the bottle, we have to consider the possibility that this is a replacement stopper. If the inside of the mouth is ground and the stopper is not, that is a tell-tale that this is not the original stopper.

You don't tell us the dimensions of the bottle, LP; but, I could imagine this bottle as cruet-size. It could have been part of a pair of cruets for say oil and vinegar. Evaporation would not have been an expensive problem in that usage. Perhaps the pink string around the body is a drip-guard or a grip-ring or both for an oil cruet.

This bottle could be any age from the mid-1800s, I imagine, right up to present. Art glass is still blown using early techniques. My intuition, such as it is, tells me this bottle is "art glass" from the first half of the 20th century.

Get some other opinions. Search books. I could be wrong.

--------------Harry Pristis

 

[ladyp3797]

Thanks very much for your help Harry,

Figurring out what questions needing to be answered is half the battle for me. I can't believe I forgot the measurements, The decanter, with the stopper in place is 11" tall, and apx. 3.5" in diameter at the widest point.

Neither the stopper nor the mouth is ground, funny thing is, even though I keep learning, I haven't come across the point of a ground stopper & mouth being an indicator of contents, that will help me greatly in the future as well! The same goes for the applied string, it would indeed stop the drips from oil.

My husband and I are antique and collectable dealers, so we aren't totally in the dark about the estate auctions. Everybody gets fooled once in awhile, but we are usually pretty good about, "spotting the good ones". I have found it quite to my advantage that the auctioneers don't know all that much about bottles, I have brought home some great (and cheap) box lots for the one or two bottles they should have pulled out and sold seperately.

Bottles are an old passion of mine, that I have finally been able to get a lot more exposure to, while I am "at work". Yea!

I was really fascinated with this decantur,for the unique qualities and characteristics, that makes freeblown glass a piece of art, weather it's intended to be useful or decorative. It sure looks lovely in the window!

I will continue to research this piece, and I do really appreciate the help!
LP

 

[woody]

Happy Birthday, LP !!!!!

 

[ladyp3797]

Aww ..thnx zo much![]

 

[David E]

I will take a quess on this piece. I think if you put that out in the sun it will turn purple which is called (Sun Glass). And I would bet on Harry's first guess of pre WW1 (1915).
Pink and purple "nice" Also if the stopper is not turning it is probaly crystal.(lead) will never change under normal conditions. It has the bubbles even if not seed bubles. If there are signs of wear check bottom with a magnifying glass. Unless never moved around it should show sign of wear, which will help in your dating old or new.
Dave

 

[ladyp3797]

Hmmm... thanks very much for your help Dave, I am familiar with sun colored glass, and I will certainly look to inverstigate the stopper, and the wear more closely! I appreciate the input!

[] Lady P