This rare Tiffany Favrile Glass Vase showcases the company’s mastery of cameo style carved decoration, representing a highly successful collaboration between Louis Comfort Tiffany and Arthurt Nash, whose skill with engraved glass was developed during his prior employment at Webb.
Tiffany and Nash first began to experiment with engraving Tiffany Glass in the mid-1890s; in these early examples, a core of clear glass was decorated with small applied pads of color and then carved. By the early 1900s, the company had expanded their techniques and decorative abilities.
This vase features decoration of green palmate leaves of various sizes which are interspersed across the surface of the vase. These vases are in relief against a background of frosted opalescent glass, a style which was first introduced by Tiffany around 1903 as the “Rock Crystal” line. Tiffany's "Rock Crystal" Favrile Glass was intended to replicate the carved quartz bottles which were popular in China in the 18th century. The “rock crystal” background of this vase has also been carved so that the motif of leaves and curvilinear branches is continued across the entire surface.
The irregular rim of the vase, which conforms to the shapes of the carved leaves, is an unusual feature in Tiffany Glass and recalls some of the popular Tiffany Lamps with naturalistic irregular lower edges, including the famed Wisteria Lamp designed by Clara Driscoll.
This rare and exceptional example of Tiffany Favrile Glass is signed on the underside with date code.
Height: 5 ¾ inches (14.6 cm)
Illustrated:
Martin Eidelberg, Tiffany Favrile Glass and the Quest of Beauty (Lillian Nassau LLC, 2007), pg. 56 fig. 66