Posted 10 years ago
funcollector
(5 items)
i feel i have a few things answered from the article but can anyone help with a possible maker or any other insight would be great!? no stamps on it anywhere. the picture that is photo copied is the same article in the picture to the left but from a earlier time with less damage. i have focused in on the wording for reading purposes.
May be Cambridge Glass - the first one below is 10", second one is 13"
http://www.ourhouseantiques.com/pics/cambridge/bkswan10.jpg
http://www.ourhouseantiques.com/pics/cambridge/bkswan13.jpg
if the article i have is corect, this swan was in garfields home in the 1800s. cambridge glass didnt dsart until 1900s. it is what i first thought too agh. i feel cambricge made a copy of the 1 garfield had?
Frankly speaking, the statements "the exact age of this piece is undetermined" and "the only other black swan of this size I have ever encountered came from the home of President James Garfield" -- (Is the article itself dated?) -- It doesn't say that Garfield himself owned it, only that it was from his home. Note that after his assassination in 1881, Garfield's widow Lucretia returned to the family home in Mentor, Ohio, known as Lawnville, and outlived her murdered husband by almost 37 years, vastly expanding it, including the addition of a library; and the Garfield house remained a family residence until 1936. There is every possibility that the piece referred to in the article may have been added to the homes furnishings by his widow after his death. Cambridge Glass also was incorporated in Cambridge, Ohio (in fact only about 130 miles from Mentor, Ohio) - Lucretia Garfield lived until 1918 so if the black swan was one of Cambridges early pieces, she had plenty of time to add it to the homes furnishings, and plenty of money as she lived comfortably on a $350,000 trust fund raised for her and the five Garfield children. About 80 percent of the furnishings now in the house, which is now a National Historic Landmark and museum, belonged to the family.
i will take some close up pics. and look at possible similartities. in detail they appeared to be very diff.
most likely this is a Cambridge swan; check the bottom closely for a maker's mark
The Cambridge site also noted that sometimes the makers mark was inadvertently ground off to make the bottom more flat so it would sit properly. Also, the actual length varies slightly because the necks were bent by hand so not all of them are exactly the same.
you intelligent group of individuals know more than me, thats why i joined the site. thanks everyone