Sulphide Marbles—Brief History And Collecting Tips

Sulphide marbles were made in the mid 1800’s until the 1930’s, and they feature a porcelain figure encased in glass.  When this type of marble was being produced, early collectors feared them because they thought that the figure in the marble was made out of sulfur, not porcelain.

The most common sulphide that I have seen is the white porcelain figure in crystal glass.  There are some variations of sulphides out there, and they can be pretty rare.

Hard-to-find sulphides that have colored glass (like green or blue), and the figures in the marble can sometimes be painted.

Another thing to keep an eye out for are different figures.  More common sulphides feature a dog or cat.  Sulphides that feature a deer, lion, pig or even a bear command a bigger price.  Human figures are also rare as well.  Numbers are also been known to show up as well.  Usually, it’s a single digit.

There are two things to keep in mind when it comes down to the condition of the marble.  The glass itself is always something to look at for chips, cracks, and even clarity.  But don’t forget to examine the figure itself.

When the marble was made, it was made by hand.  The figure was inserted into the molten glass, and then the glass was formed into the final shape.  When the figure was inserted into the glass, it could crack or an air bubble could form right beside it.  The crack is usually obvious, even to the naked eye.  I have even seen figures completely split in half.

You can find plenty of modern sulphides for sale.  The difference in new and old sulphides are very obvious.  The new sulphides have an extremely high quality on both the glass and the figure.  The figure will always be perfectly centered.  They were meant to be collected and displayed.

Old sulphides will have air bubbles in the glass, and the figure will be off-centered and sometimes there will be a pontil mark.  They were meant to be played with, and they often were.  Sometimes they were played with to the point where they are chipped and even cracked.

There is an authentic antique sulphide marble in my Etsy store; you can see it here.

It’s Tea Time

When 1971 rolled around, Mosser Glass Company produced a Children’s Set with the “Jennifer” pattern. 

The “Jennifer” pattern is based on the Depression glass pattern that’s called “Cameo.”  The “Cameo” is also called “Ballerina” or “Dancing Girl” and was produced by Hocking Glass Company from 1930 to 1934.  When the Hocking Glass Company made the “Cameo” pattern, they never produced any children’s dishes, so you if you happen to run across a child’s dish in this pattern, you know it was made by the Mosser Glass Company in 1971.

This set happens to have 17 small groupings in it, and each grouping has two or three pieces each sold in their own box.  Each group could have a bowl and a pair of candlesticks, a few grill plates (also called a divided or 3 compartment plate), or even a teapot and cups.  This way you could mix and match what pieces you would want so that you don’t have a massive set on your hands.

 

The groups can be found either loose, or you can find them still in their original boxes.

 

The great thing about having the box for the collections is twofold when you think about it.  Not only do they add value to the set, they are also a great way to help store the items when you happen to pick up some of the pieces.

Be careful, though.  The pieces that you find can be chipped or even cracked due to the fact that children could have used these at tea time, so be sure to check every piece that you are interested in very thoroughly.

I have a collection of the “Jennifer” set in my Etsy store, which can be seen here.

 

 

 

Goofus Glass: Holiday Decoration

The great thing about the antiques and collectibles area is the fact that you never know what you might run across that you could use or display during the holidays.  It could be just about anything, really.

Goofus Glass is a perfect collectible for the holidays.

 



 The dominant colors on many Goofus Glass items, gold and red, would go great with any Christmas decoration that you might have.

 

And the great thing is that you can pick up some pieces that could have a dual purpose.   The powder jar shown below could be used as a potpourri holder (cinnamon potpourri makes any home smell like the holidays), and the bowl above can hold anything from holiday ornaments to decorations for the table.

 

Even a vase could be a multi-purpose item.  Not only could it hold flowers, it could even be used to hold a bouquet of vintage cocktail stirrers.

 

 

Just be careful, though.  The relatives could see the Goofus Glass pieces and want to take them home with them after the holidays are over.

 

You can see all of the Goofus Glass in my Etsy store here.

I'm Open For Business Again!

This past week has been rather chaotic for me to say the least.  The computers at my house all decided to go on strike and completely stop working at the same time.

With this very unfortunate turn of events, I had to find a functioning computer and shut my TIAS and Etsy stores down for a few days so that I could get everything resolved.

I created a new coupon code in my Etsy store to help celebrate the reopening.  All you have to do is use the code REOPEN10 to receive a 10 percent discount when you make a purchase.
 
So hurry!  The coupon code will expire on Monday, November 12.