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Collecting: Gilded Age China and Glass |
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A Dorflinger & Sons cut-glass and etched punch bowl (circa 1914) is admired by the collecting duo who are fans of the Corning Museum of Glass, where the super-sized bowl is on display. Marked only by paper labels that often fell off, Dorflinger’s works are identified and dated now through patterns found in original catalogs.
The poppy punch bowl combines acid-etched (poppy motif) and cut-glass (panels and chisel marks) techniques. Acid-etched decoration is created by coating the glass in wax, then scratching the design through the wax. Dipped into hydrofluoric acid, the exposed glass is etched by the corrosive acid. Diamond-point engraving, an earlier and costlier process, requires cutting directly into the glass by hand. Copper-wheel engraving requires a lathe-like machine fitted with grinding tools to cut decoration into glass. Always feel for a slightly raised design to separate engraved glass from the more affordable but flatter acid-etched glass.
The curvy, scalloped, cut rim crowns the punch bowl with a shapely silhouette few can resist. The rough, chisel-like pit marks look hand-hammered but were cut on a wheel. The flowery Kalana series, designed by Englishman Charles Northwood, includes poppies, lilies, and geraniums. The floral pattern was inspired by the Art Nouveau movement.
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