The Case Of The Spatter Glass Chip Decor Variations - Czech Glass 1920s

Today I was inspired by the rejection of the idea that if a glass spatter decor does not match exactly, it is not by the same producer or glass facility. Not the first time and won't be the last that some collectors expect the placement and size of the spatter chips on the piece to match from object to object when made by the same producer.

The fabrication process needs to be understood, in these cases, and many others, where a second layer of glass shards, flakes, or chips is added on a cooled glass vessel, that will become a decorative colored glass application after further heating, before a final layer is applied, or not.

The chips are spread on a flat surface and the glass vessel is rolled evenly on the chips to coat it, this is called marvered. The only effort to match another piece is if this is a pair, and even then, they will not be exactly the same. Just as the placement of millefiori cane slices are not positioned in exactly the same way when added to a shaped glass base.

The result is a variety of spatter designs, in the same colors, but not matching in size and placement. Often the surface has also been pulled which elongates the colored chips to filaments or long ovals.

These are all hand crafted glass manipulations which are unique and expected to be so. That is part of the innovation of hot furnace glass production, to this day, it is people who hold the many tools and gadgets and master the art of these complex glass craftsmanship skills.

Perhaps the idea of all these differences goes against the concept of consistent and careful decors in glass. This may have been part of the approach of earlier types of high quality and high value decorative glass. What we see is a definite change from those standards, to a less time consuming, and higher volume of productivity after WWI, or 1920 and later, in Czechoslovakia.

If you want to see demonstrations of these decorative glass creations, I strongly suggest you watch some on UTube. It is amazing to see. My images are from my collection, glass pieces that match in spatter decor combinations, yet are different.