- Acid
(or satin) finish
 A
matte finish on glassware which is achieved by exposing the piece to
acid fumes during the finishing process. More rarely the finished is
obtained by the use of a mechanical grinding wheel.
- Applied
 A
handle(s) or other portion of a vessel which consists of a separate
piece of molten glass attached by hand to the object. Most often used
with free-blown or mold-blown pieces but also used with early pressed
glass.
- Appliqued
glass
 A
type of decorative glass which features hand-applied three-dimensional
trim, often in the form of fruit or flowering vines. This glass trim
is applied in the semi-molten state while the main object is still
extremely hot so that the appliqué becomes an integral part of the
piece.
- Art
Glass
 An
umbrella term that refers to all types of decorative glasswares but
most specifically to the expensive, specially patented lines produced
during the late 19th century. Notable types of Art Glass include
Amberina, Burmese, and Peach Blow, among many others.
- Batch
- A mixture of chemicals
and sand that makes up a type and color of glass.
- Blank
- The shape of the mould
in which glass is formed.
- Blocker
- The person who shapes
the glass, fresh from the furnace, and blows the first bubble of air
through a blow pipe, into the glass.
- Blower
- Person who manipulates
the glass into shape and plunges it into a mould. He then forces it
throughout the mould by blowing into it.
- Bohemia
- The western glass region of
Czechoslovakia, formerly an independent kingdom, later a region of the
Austro-Hungarian empire which became part of the newly formed country
after World War 1 ended in 1918. Glass of every description has been
produced there since the 14th century. The industry was nationalized
by the Communist government in 1946. It is sad that after 600 years of
glass making history, only two names are recognized by most American
glass collectors. Those are Moser (pronounced Mózer) and
Loetz(or Lötz).
Bohemian Designers
- Cameo
glass
 A
glass composed of two or more layers of glass, most often of
contrasting colors, which are then carved through the surface with
decorative designs. This ancient Roman technique was revived by the
English in the late 19th century and English examples usually feature
a white outer surface cut through to expose a single color background.
English cameo often featured classical and botanical designs whereas
the slightly later French cameo often featured more abstract
naturalistic and landscape designs in more than two colors. Cameo
carving can be done either by hand or with the use of acid, the
hand-carved examples bringing higher prices.
- Carrying-in
Boy
- The person who takes
finished article to the Lehr for final cooling.
- Cased
glass
- Glassware which is
composed of two or more layers of colored glass. The inner layer may
be blown into outer layers while the glass is still hot or a piece in
one color may be dipped into the molten glass of another color while
it is hot. Cameo glass (see above) is a form of cased glass and
Victorian satin glass is also often cased.
- Console
set
- A three-piece tableware
set generally composed of a pair of candlesticks and a wide, low-sided
center bowl. These sets in pressed and mold-blown glassware were
especially popular in the 1920s and 1930s.
- Cracker
jar
- Also sometimes referred
to as a 'biscuit jar,' these are decorative Victorian counterparts of
the modern cookie jar. Produced in various chinawares as well as Art
glass, they are often rounded barrel-shaped pieces fitted with a
silver plate rim, cover and bail handle.
- Crackling
- Crackilng is produced
by quickly cooling glass that has been fired to a carefully-controlled
temperature.
- Crimping
- A method of decorating
the rims of bowls and vases. The glassworker used a special hand tool
to manipulate the nearly-molten pressed or blown glass and form a
ribbon-like design.
- Crosshatching
- A term generally used
in discussing Brilliant Period cut glass. It refers to a cut design of
parallel or crossed fine lines.
- Crystal
- A generic term
generally used today when referring to thin, fine quality glass
stemware produced since the early 20th century. Derived from the
Italian term cristallo referring to delicate, clear Venetian
blown glass produced since the 14th century.
- Enameled
decoration
- A form of decoration
used on may types of Victorian Art glass. White or colored enamel
paints were generally hand-painted on a finished piece of glass which
was then refired to bake-on the enamel decoration.
- Epergne
- A French term used to
describe a special decorative vessel popular in the 19th century. It
generally consists of one or more tall, slender trumpet-form vases
centering a wide, shallow bowl base. The bowl base could also be
raised on a pedestal foot. It sometimes refers to a piece with a
figural pedestal base supporting several small bowls or suspending
several small baskets. Also made from silver or other metals.
- Etching
- A method of decorating
a piece of glass. The two main types are acid etching and needle
etching. In acid etching a piece is covered with an
acid-resistant protective layer and then scratched with a design which
is then exposed to hydrofluoric acid or acid fumes, thus leaving a
frosted design when the protective layer is removed. Needle etching is
a 20th century technique where a hand-held or mechanized needle is
used to draw a fine-lined design on a piece. Ornate repetative designs
were possible with the mechanized needle.
- Finisher
- The worker who puts the
final edge, ruffle, or crimp into a piece of glass.
- Fire-polishing
- A process used to
finish mold-blown and pressed glass where a piece is reheated just
enough to smooth out the mold seams withour distorting the overall
pattern
- Flashing
- A form of decoration
popular on various types of Victorian glass wherein a glass piece of
one color is, while still very hot, dipped into molten glass of
another color to form a very thin outer layer. Quite often this thin
outer layer was then engraved with a naturalistic design cut through
to the base. A similar effect could be obtained by applying a colored
stain (often in ruby red or amber) and this staining was especially
popular on late 19th century pattern glass whereas flashing was
reserved for generally more expensive lines of glassware.
- Gather
- The still unformed glob
of glass, fresh from the furnaces.
- Gatherer
- The worker who scoops
glass from the tank and takes it to the mould.
- Glory
Hole
- A small oven which
softens glass to permit a finished shape.
- Hand
Swung
- Pieces of glass that
are swung by the end of the mould, to stretch them longer than
originally intended.
- Handkerchief
vase
- A form of vase most
often seen in 20th century Venetian glass where the sides of the piece
are pulled straight up and randomly pleated to resemble a large
handkerchief
- Handler
- The worker that makes
handles for baskets, jugs, pitchers, etc...
- Iridescence
- A type of shiny,
metallic finish popular on late 19th and early 20th century glassware
from makers such as Tiffany, Loetz and Steuben. The effect is achieved
by spraying the still-hot piece with metallic oxides which deposit the
shiny surface.
- Jack-in-the-pulpit
or JIP
- A form of vase with the
rim manipulated to resemble the wildflower of this name. Generally the
back edge is curled up while the front edge is curled downward. Many
types of late 19th century decorative glass featured vases in this
form.
- Knop
- Another term for
'knob,' usually referring to a finial on a lid or a bulbous section on
the stem of a goblet or wine glass.
- Lehr
- The device in which
finished glass is cooled.
- Millefiori
- An Italian term meaning
"thousand flowers," in glass it refers to a design produced
by combining small multicolored discs (or 'canes') of glass to form an
overall design or to decorate the interior of a paperweight.
- Mold
Blown
- A method of glass
production where a blob of molten glass (called a "gather")
is blown into a patterned mold and then removed and further blown and
manipulated to form an object such as a bottle.
- Opaline
Glass
- Glass that is solid in
color when viewed normally, but translucent when held to heat or
light.
- Opaque
Glass
- Glass that does not
allow light to pass through it, showing little fire or translucence
when held to light.
- Overlay
Glass
- Cased glass in which
one layer is poured over another.
- Piedouche
- A French term referring
to a paperweight which is raised on a low, applied clear foot.
- Pontil
Mark
- The scar left on the
base of a free-blown, mold-blown and some early pressed glass by the
pontil or punty rod. The hot glass object was attached at the base to
the pontil rod so the glassworker could more easily handle it during
the final shaping and finishing. When snapped off the pontil a round
scar remained which, on finer quality pieces, was polished smooth.
- Presser
- The worker who cuts off
the glass when the mold is filled.
- Rigaree
- Applied ribbon-like
crimped decoration which highlights some types of Victorian Art Glass.
It is a form of appliqued decoration.
- Ringer
- The worker who spins a
thin ring of molten glass to finished piece, such as applied jet rim.
- Rose
Bowl
- A decorative small
spherical or egg-shaped bowl, generally with a scalloped or crimped
incurved rim, which was designed to hold rose petal potpourri or small
rose blossoms. It was widely popular in the late 19th century and was
produced in many pressed glass patterns as well as more expensive Art
glass wares such as satin glass.
- Scalloping
- A decorative treatment
used on the rims of plates, bowls, vases and similar objects. It was
generally produced during the molding of the object and gave the rim a
wavy or ruffled form.
- Sickness
- A term referring to the
cloudy staining found in pressed or blown glass pieces, especially
bottles, decanters and vases. It is caused when a liquid is allowed to
stand in a piece for a long period of time causing a chemical
deterioration of the interior surface. Generally it is nearly
impossible to remove completely.
- Spall
- A shallow rounded flake
on a glass object, generally near the rim of a piece.
- Teardrop
- A deliberately placed
inclusion in a piece of glass which is formed by a bubble of air. They
are sometimes used to highlight the stopper of a bottle or decanter or
in the stems of goblets, wines or other stemware.
- Warming-in
Boy
- The person who takes
glass from the glory hole to the finisher
- Water
Set
- A tableware set popular in all types
of 19th and early 20th century glasswares. It usually consisted of a
large pitcher and a set of six matching tumblers or goblets.
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