Stourbridgre - Thomas Webb, Stevens & Williams, Stuart & Sons - Dressing table set (7) - cranberry glass - Victorian Cranberry Glass

Seven-Piece Stourbridge Cranberry Glass Collection – Victorian to Early 20th Century – c. 1880–1930

Object details

Type: Collection of decorative art glass / table glass
Number of pieces: 7
Material: Mouth-blown glass
Colour: Cranberry / gold-ruby glass with clear and white glass decoration
Origin: England – Stourbridge glassmaking district
Period: Late Victorian to early 20th century, approximately 1880–1930
Attribution: Stourbridge glass; individual factory attribution not established
Condition: Six pieces in excellent original condition; one lidded bonbonniere with a crack, as described below

Description

A particularly attractive collection of seven original pieces of English Stourbridge cranberry art glass, dating from the late Victorian period through the early decades of the 20th century.

The collection represents several characteristic decorative techniques associated with the Stourbridge glassmaking district, including optic moulding, applied clear glass, trailed white threading, crimped and ruffled rims, pincered decoration and applied floral prunts.

Stourbridge was one of the most important centres of British glassmaking, with numerous manufacturers operating in the surrounding area. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, firms including Stevens & Williams, Thomas Webb & Sons, Richardson and other Stourbridge-area manufacturers produced a wide variety of decorative coloured glass. Threading and applied decoration were not exclusive to a single factory, making a regional Stourbridge attribution appropriate where no manufacturer’s mark is present.

The collection comprises:

1–2. Pair of miniature ruffled rose bowls

Two small cranberry-glass rose bowls with strongly formed, wavy/crimped rims and an internal vertical optic pattern beneath the smooth outer surface.

Both retain their original bases and show the characteristics of hand-blown production.

Approx. height: 7.5 cm
Approx. diameter: 8 cm each

3. Miniature cream jug

A small cranberry-glass cream jug with an applied clear-glass loop handle and matching optic decoration.

Approx. height: 6.5 cm

4. Matching miniature sugar basin

A small open cranberry-glass sugar basin or finger bowl, complementing the miniature cream jug and rose bowls.

Approx. height: 7.5 cm

5. Cranberry-glass threaded jug

A hand-blown cranberry-glass jug with applied clear loop handle and finely executed white glass threading around the upper body.

The contrast between the translucent ruby-cranberry body and opaque white threading is particularly characteristic of the decorative glass produced in the Stourbridge district during the late Victorian period.

Approx. height: 10 cm
Approx. width: 9.5 cm including handle and spout

6. Cranberry-glass threaded jug with applied petal feet

A second, particularly decorative threaded jug, again with a clear applied loop handle and white glass threading.

This example stands on an unusual applied clear-glass base incorporating pincered, petal-like feet, giving the piece considerable decorative interest.

The delicate applied work remains complete.

Approx. height: 10 cm
Approx. width: 9.5 cm including handle and spout

7. Lidded cranberry-glass bonbonniere

A rounded cranberry-glass bonbonniere, candy dish or vanity jar with its original matching lid.

The body is decorated with a continuous band of applied clear-glass floral rosettes/prunts, while the lid is finished with a substantial clear-glass finial.

This is an especially attractive example of the elaborate applied-glass decoration associated with British art glass of the period.

Approx. overall height: 10 cm
Approx. diameter: 13 cm including applied decoration

Dating and attribution

The collection is attributed to the Stourbridge glassmaking district of the English West Midlands, rather than to a single named manufacturer.

The combination of cranberry/gold-ruby glass, hand-blown construction, pontil marks, white threading, applied clear handles, pincered/petalled feet and floral prunt decoration is entirely consistent with the decorative glass produced in the Stourbridge area from the late Victorian period into the early 20th century.

The pieces are considered to represent more than one production period within this tradition, rather than being a single matched service. The earliest examples are consistent with late 19th-century Victorian production, while some of the forms and decorative treatment are appropriate to the early 20th century.

Overall dating: approximately 1880–1930.

No maker’s marks have been identified, therefore no specific attribution to Stevens & Williams, Thomas Webb & Sons or another individual Stourbridge manufacturer is claimed. This is intentional: the Stourbridge district contained numerous glassworks producing related forms and techniques.

Condition

The six open pieces are in excellent original condition.

There are no chips, missing applied elements or restorations observed. The white threading on both larger jugs remains intact, and the delicate clear-glass petal feet on the footed jug are complete.

The pieces retain natural base wear consistent with their age and history of use/display. This is particularly appropriate to genuinely old hand-blown glass and should not be confused with recent damage or manufacturing defects.

The lidded bonbonniere has a crack in the glass. This is the only significant condition issue within the collection and is clearly visible in the photographs. The applied floral decoration and clear finial remain present.

The condition of the individual pieces should be judged from the photographs, which form an integral part of this description.

Provenance

The collection was acquired from a private English collection and subsequently brought to Spain.

A substantial group of related original pieces such as this provides an excellent opportunity to acquire a representative collection of British Stourbridge cranberry glass spanning the late Victorian and early 20th-century period.