My trip to the Corning Glass museum

[earlyglass]

Well, you certainly can't argue with that kind of provenance. Maybe they looked so nice that I should have said that they were "unreal". I guess they are just forms that I have seen reproduced in the 20th century. It is a shame that reproductions (and there are many) can really create such suspicion.

Mike

 

[kungfufighter]

Not saying that this is necessarily the case here but George and Henry also bought into the Mutzer group. One of McKearin's very few errors...

Thanks for the photos Steve!

 

[Steve/sewell]

As for the tippecanoe bottle he belongs on a shelf by his own also only two ever recorded Mike.I understand how you feel about the Connecticut and New Hampshire glass being pushed back in a couple of the displays.Maybe what they could do is exhibt the glass on a per state basis.The green Jenny Lind has never been proven and it was more here-say then real.Jenny Lind was the most important person in the world in the 1849 to 1860 period as people were paying outrageous prices to see her in concert.No other entertainer had a larger following then she as far as music or any art for that matter including the Beatles.She was loved by everyone 5 to 100 in age the same cannot be said for rock entertainers as their audience is mostly the 15 to 35 age bracket at the time of their peak.So I think one known flask qualifys as being one of the the most dersirable and rare.Its more about regional pride for all of us in this hobby as some of us tend to collect heavily the glass from our own regions As for rarity what could be more rare then an end of day piece or a presentation piece.You all know I am a Jersey boy tried and true and feel we are still the bread butter of our hobby down here in Southern New Jersey but I would have to say unbiasedly Amelung made the best looking and most desirable glass this country has ever seen.The proof is in the pudding.

 

[earlyglass]

The emerald green one was owned by Sam Laidacker. I am sure there are others out there as well. No arguemnt that it is a beautiful and rare flask. However, it is a Jenny Lind flask... one mold that is different from a group of roughly 10 molds. The example that I selected (pint Charter Oak is one example in the pint size, and only one other mold, the 1/2 pint size. I'm sure Jenny was hot, but she doesn't hold a candle to that Blue Columbia. Being a calabash and all, you may have "overinflated" her. []

 

[Steve/sewell]

The Mutzer group ............Were'nt they they three mold forgerys of New England glass I heard about this a couple of years ago.I was coresponding with Ian Simmonds a couple of years ago and he mentioned the Mutzer group to me and explained to me what had happened.That only through chemical analytical and close resolution photography were the flaws exposed.

 

[earlyglass]

Further the only GII-59 Charter Oak is in a peacock blue.

At auction, I would venture to say thatthis GII-59 would bring 5x the current world record, and the GI-106 in aqua would fight to break five figures.

 

[earlyglass]

The Journal Of Glass Studies conducted by Corning reviews the molds, forms and differences between the Mutzer glass and originals.
Volume 15, 1973

 

[earlyglass]

Yes, hats off to the Amelung Glass... truly remarkable.
Question is... Amelung or the many incredible artisans from overseas?

 

[kungfufighter]

The Mutzer fakes are in fact blown three mold - most are amethyst and most are blown in a mold similar to GIII-5, though other molds and colors are represented in the group. The objects came with a supposed family history that was pure fabrication. You are correct Steve, scientific analysis was the final nail in the Mutzer coffin but the forms are quite simply "off." In the end, McKearin so wanted these objects to be right he overlooked the relatively obvious "tells" and instead bought into a story that turned out to be bunk. Fortunately, that was a very rare occurrence for the McKearins - many of the early books on glass (and other antiques) are now known to be filled with misleading info but the McKearin texts remain the "bible" for the bottle and glass collector. Quite a heady accomplishment in my opinion, especially with the easy (any never before available) access to information provided in the current age. In fact, of all the objects pictured the McKearin texts, less than 1% are now considered to be anything other than as they are recorded. As my friend Rob once opined, "McKearin did damn well without having a McKearin book."

 

[cyberdigger]

GREAT SHOW STEVE!!!! []