General Terms
ABCG – American Brilliant Period cut glass is fine quality, hand-cut crystal or American origin that is produced from 1876 to roughly 1920 (M.S. Rau). For more information see: The American Cut Glass Association.
Annealing – a process of uniformly reheating and cooling a completed object to decrease the incidence of breakage caused by the internal stress of cooling too quickly. (The Elegant Epergne)
BPCG – Brilliant Period cut glass is fine quality, hand-cut crystal of non-American origin that is produced from 1876 to roughly 1920 (M.S. Rau).
Bobeche – a glass collar on a candle socket to catch drippings or on a candlestick or chandelier to hold suspended glass prisms.
Cabochon – a gem or bead cut in convex form and highly polished but not faceted (Merriam-Webster).
Dauber – a device for applying perfume- generally cylindrical with a knobbed top.
Fitter – the outer diameter of the lip which is inserted into the fixture's shade holder.
Hallmark – the mark or stamp of an article that identifies the quality of the metal, the manufacture date, and the maker’s mark – a tradition that dates back to the European medieval guilds. (The Elegant Epergne)
Insert – a piece that fits inside something else such as a frame or a base.
Intaglio – a method of cutting or engraving glass here the cuts are curved and deep giving the impression of a difference in height. (The Elegant Epergne)
Marriage – when two pieces are placed together even though they would not originally belong together. For
example: a mismatched bride’s bowl and bride’s stand that fit, but were not originally intended to be a set.
MOP – mother of pearl, the hard pearly iridescent substance forming the inner layer of a mollusk shell (Merriam-Webster).
Peach Blow – a heat-sensitive glass containing uranium and gold oxide which resembles the peach-bloom glaze found on Chinese porcelain. (The Elegant Epergne)
Pontil – the place on a piece of blown glass where it has been detached from the rod.
Prunts – small pieces of glass applied to a vessel for decoration. (The Elegant Epergne)
Putti – a figure of an infant boy especially in European art of the Renaissance - usually used in plural (Merriam-Webster).
Staub – the cylinder shaped part of a two-part bowl that nests into a corresponding base.
Vaseline – glass colored by uranium oxide giving a greenish-yellow transparent hue which fluoresces under a black light. (The Elegant Epergne)
DAMAGE
(Anything on the item that could negatively affect the value)
Flea Bites –pin-head size or smaller glass losses which can usually be detected with a fingernail or magnifying glass; these are generally not reported in our condition description.
Nick – slightly bigger than a flea bite but not of significant size to call in our condition description.
Chip – bigger than a nick; these are considered significant enough to be called on our condition description.
Scuff – scratches or rubs on the glass usually caused by normal use.
Crack – a fracture that is highly visible and refracts light.
Hairline –small, tight crack that does not go through to the other side of the item (this terminology is only used for porcelain).
Crows feet – short hairlines that fan out in several directions (this terminology is only used for porcelain).
Bruise – when a piece of glass gets hit, but does not result in glass loss – you can usually visibly see the damage but not necessarily feel it.
Information was gathered from the following sources:
Merriam-Webster
M.S. Rau
Koppelman, Bunny and Charles. The Elegant Epergne, Harry N. Abrams Inc, 1995.
FACTORY FLAWS
(Interesting phenomenon that are pointed out but are not called flaws because they happened when the item was made)
Ash Mark – when a bit of ash is embedded in the glass during manufacturing.
Cooling Mark - String-like inclusions in glass caused as the hot glass cools. Often called “straw marks.”
Crazing – Crazing is a glaze defect of glazed pottery characterized as a spider web pattern of cracks penetrating the glaze; it is caused by tensile stresses greater than the glaze is able to withstand.
Inclusions – When tiny air bubbles get trapped inside the glass during manufacturing.
Sand Deposit - Small included piece of sand remaining from the manufacturing process. May look like bits of sand or a small stone. (Sometimes called a stone inclusion or a stone dog.)
Round Pontil Mark - Circular, slightly rough mark on the bottom of an item, caused by the removal of the item from the glass blowing rod. Found on blown and blown-mold items.
Rough Pontil Mark - Raised, sometimes sharp, mark or scar on the bottom of a blown glass item, caused by the removal of the item from the glass blowing rod. Often appears as a small glob on the bottom of an item.
Shear Mark or Straw Mark - Straight mark or scar caused by the shears used to cut away the molten glass as it was being dropped into the mold. Sometimes called a “straw mark”.
Straw Mark – a string-like line that happens in the glass during cooling (often used interchangeably with “shear mark” or “cool mark”.
Tool Mark – when the cutting machine leaves one or more tiny, very straight cuts in a piece of cut glass.
Open Bubble or Inclusion – a bubble close to the surface that has broken open.
