The House of Brilliant Glass

This beautifully-crafted jug is one of the largest we have ever offered…….
—  It stands 14 1/2-inches tall and weighs 11-lbs. 9-oz.
—  It holds 3-qts. 8-oz.
—  The 7 3/4-inch diameter base has a 32-point hobstar
—  Its cut-all-over design consists of fans, notched miters, crosshatching and 45 hobstars!
—  The double-notched handle is perfectly attached
—  The ‘best-metal’ blank is clear and colorless and fluoresces a strong apple green
—  The cutting is precise and polished to a mirror-like brilliance
—  The piece is in better than extremely fine condition as described on our website

A fine piece of American Brilliant cut glass that displays to advantage and encourages comment

5  5/8-inch diameter rim — 3 1/4-inches tall
It is small but the 3/8-inch thick blank weighs a hefty 2-lbs.
Unusual swag-type design with deep cuts
Clear, colorless blank of high quality
Better than extremely fine condition

Cut by the masters at L. Straus & Sons of New York, NY
10-inch diameter — 4-inches tall
Precise, well-polished cutting on a clear, water-white blank
3/8-inch thick blank weighs 6-lbs. 9-oz.
16-point hobstar on bottom
Better than extremely fine condition

This lovely goblet was cut by J.D. Bergen of Meriden, Conn.  in the Crown design.

5 5/8-inches tall — 3-inch top diameter
A handful at 1-lb. 2-oz.
Precise cutting on a clear, water-white blank
16-point rayed star on base
Original top and base rims

Better than extremely fine condition

— 4 1/2-inches tall — 2 5/8-inch top diameter
— hobstar base
— water-white Dorflinger blank w/precise cutting & excellent polish
— better than extremely fine condition as described on our website

$195 for the set of five
$90 for a pair

Both pieces of this most unusual footed, covered comport are signed with the ‘shamrock’ trademark of the T.G. Hawkes Co.   It stands 9 1/2-inches tall with the lid in place and 6-inches tall without the lid; it has a maximum diameter of 7 3/4-inches.  The piece is heavy to the hand at 4-lbs. 15-oz. and has a 24-point radiant star on the base.  The clarity of the colorless glass is stunning.

A simple but elegant shape that displays to advantage and is in better than extremely fine condition.

Pitcher is 7 3/4-inches tall — 5 3/4-inch base diameter
32-point hobstar on base
Excellent blanks with precise cutting and beautifully polish
Tumblers are 3 3/4-inches tall — original rims
There are two small chips on the inside rim of the pitcher; other wise, all pieces are in excellent condition

We have three tumblers for this set which will be included

T.G. Hawkes & Co. of Corning, NY was one of America’s finest cutting houses and was also one of the first companies to patent their designs.  The “Aberdeen” design was patented by T.G. Hawkes on April 14, 1896.  The design and its execution are typical of Hawkes’ ca.1896 work product; the blank is of the highest quality, the cutting is extremely deep and the wood-wheel polishing has a mirror-like brilliance.  Pearson rates “Aberdeen”  3 for rarity (very rare) and 4 for quality/price range (high priced).

This is a large piece measuring 13 1/2-inches point-to-point, 11 1/2-inches side-to-side, stands 1 1/4-inches tall and weighs a hefty 4-lbs. 14-oz.   It is sharp to the touch when held.   It takes a master to precisely cut the 24-point hobstars on the curved edges of the plate, a difficult task!  The tray is in better than extremely fine condition and is an excellent example of the best of early American Brilliant cut glass.  A really handsome piece that deserves prominent display in your collection.

Kelly & Steinman of Honesdale, PA was not a large or well-known producer of American Brilliant cut glass.  The Honesdale/White Mills area had several cutting houses, hence a large labor pool.  The area also was the home of Dorflinger & Sons, a most prolific producer of much of the best metal of the American Brilliant era.  Having access to both labor and materials, it is not surprising that a small company like Kelly & Steinman produced a high-quality product in such an environment.  We have viewed and owned only a few of their products and they were all beautifully cut and polished on the best of blanks.

A line drawing of the vase is on the cover of LABAC’s cut glass advertisements Book Three.  Page KEL8 shows a June 1907 Kelly & Steinman ad featuring this exact vase (No.37 vase, “Roman.”)  It has a unique shape, features a scalloped, 6-inch diameter foot with a 32-point hobstar, stands 9-inches tall and has a top diameter of 7 1/2-inches.  It is ‘stout’ and weighs 7-lbs. 5-oz.  The vase is in better than extremely fine condition as described on the website.

This is a unique and eye-catching shape that displays beautifully.

This 7 1/2 x 3-inch bowl with rounded sides is cut in Mt. Washington’s “Three-Cut-Octagon” design that features very deeply-cut wheel cutting that has very small, 8-point, clear-button hobstars on each hob.  The stock removal necessary to create this design is quite amazing — there is no area remaining uncut on the entire piece!  It is in better than extremely fine condition.

This very large, American Brilliant cut glass  inkwell weighs 4-lbs. 14-oz. and is carved out of a single block of glass that measures 3 5/8-inches square  and 5 1/4-inches to the top of the sterling lid.  The sterling is touchmarked ‘BLACK STAR & FROST sterling’ in block letters;  BS&F is a New York, NY company.  This touchmark was to have been in use between 1874 and 1908.  When ‘googled,’ one will find that BS&F is the oldest continuously operating jeweler in the United States; it was founded in 1810 and is still in operation today.

—  The beautifully-crafted repousse sterling lid is in perfect condition
—  The angled tusks cover the entire piece excepting the flat base which has a 24-point radiant star
—  The glass, which is quite clear and colorless, has an unusual optical effect that is created by the angled tusk cutting
—  The lid fits perfectly and the hinge is tight
—  The entire piece has a soft, silky feel due to the wheel polishing
—  Although our photos do not show it in place, there is an insert that fits into the opening on the inkwell
—  Both the body and the removable insert fluoresce a soft, apple green indicating an American blank and cutting house

A top-of-the-line piece of American Brilliant cut glass that displays to advantage and is in our better than extremely fine condition as defined on our website.  Enjoy!

This 3 x 3 x 4-inch inkwell features a “swirl-on-swirl” design.  The glass, which fluoresces an apple green, is deeply cut and beautifully polished in an over-the-shoulder swirl design that is complimented by the Gorham sterling silver lid which also features swirls.  The bottom has a very deeply-cut, 32-point rayed star and the piece is very heavy for its size.  The hinge works perfectly and the sterling top has been professionally polished.  Both the glass and the sterling are in near perfect condition except for wear marks on the bottom of the glass.