Featured Need Help with Antique Glass Beads

Several years ago I removed two beaded shoulder embellishments from this antique dress bodice thinking I would sell them separately some day. Each piece includes two saphiret glass stones, and various glass beads.







I'm familiar with early saphiret glass, but I'm puzzled about the iridescent black beads. I've never seen anything like them. I'm wondering if they're mouth blown since they're different sizes. They remind me of Tiffany favrile glass or Loetz glass, but I can't find any similar beads online.

I looked through my Jargstorf book on Bohemian glass baubles and beads, but the only example I found of iridescent beads were from the 1960s. Based on the style of dress, would it be accurate to call the beads Bohemian mouth-blown art glass beads? Art Nouveau era? Rare? Any help is appreciated.

 

An amazing amount of work went into that embroidery! I can' help with the black glass beads. One of our bead experts will probably set you in the right direction!

 

Thank you.

 

I'm thinking of turning them into headpieces--like the type popular in the Art Deco era, but are the beads too old to be considered Art Deco?

 

Well, the blouse is far earlier than deco so, yes, those particular beads are, too. Perhaps, they were still in production in the 1920s.

 

Wow, Joan you find the greatest things! Gorgeous beads and even saphirets! This looks like it should be in a museum.

Since you have a photo of the original garment can anyone here really nail down the age of the dress bodice? Could it be an antique theater costume? I think that might be the key to age. No question this is fully antique though.

As you mentioned the black beads look hand blown. Different sizes, you can see that in the photo. Certainly glass companies like Loetz, etc had iridescent glass way before AB coating. What a find this was.

No real help here... just gushing with admiration. But clothing folks, can anyone date this bodice with any precision? Anyone know clothing like this? Maybe: @bluumz @Debora

 

Thanks for the vote of confidence but this one is beyond my realm of knowledge.
(I mostly deal in 1940s and newer. Whenever I get an older piece, I usually need help with it, too!)

It's stunning!

 

Thanks, Lucille. I decided to actually read my Sibylle Jargstorf book, "Baubles, Buttons and Beads The Heritage of Bohemia," and found information on the history of mouth-blown iridized glass beads, and also some information on gold-lined beads (which are shown in the photos above). I'm still working on typing up excerpts, but from what I've read so far, I think the iridized black beads are probably made from "stone" glass, which was produced throughout the 19th century by anonymous Gablonz makers for use in beads, buttons, and gemstones.

This is a quote from the Jargstorf book, "
“In 1856, a Hungarian chemist had introduced the surface decoration of iridescence; such glass was shown for the first time at the World Fair in Vienna in 1873. Paul Weiskopf was extremely fascinated by this glass, but because the original maker was very secretive about his procedure Weiskopf had to experiment extensively to find his own method, which he published in 1876. After the World Fair in Paris in 1878, iridized glass became a craze in Europe and North America.”

 

Here's another quote from the book.
“Weiskopf noted the difficulties with which glass-blowers had to cope when working with this type of glass (stoneglass). According to him, only the manufacturer Josef Riedel in Polaun produced satisfactory quality in blown stone-glass.” After Paul Weiskopf’s sudden death, his brother Iwan (1848-1911) took over the company. Like his father, he was a doctor, and he was similarly concerned about the wellfare of the workers. One of his most important achievements to their benefit was the foundation of the “Cooperation of the lampworkers for blown beads” in 1898. He continued to work in the field of lining beads, and shortly before the turn of the century introduced the method of lining them with real gold.” After gold lining was introduced by Iwan Weiskopf, Morchenstern (Bohemia) makers held a virtual monopoly on this type of bead until 1945.” Source - Baubles, Buttons, and Beads The Heritage of Bohemia by Sibylle Jargstorf.

 

Great research!

 

Thank you, Curioser. I forgot about one of the photos I took several years ago of two damaged black beads that I decided to break open to see if the iridescence went all the way through, which it does. The glass also seems thicker than blown glass beads (I'm sorry about the poor photo quality).

So I did some reading about glass beadmaking and learned that lampwork beads can be made from glass tubes, and the tools used are similar to those used for glassblowing. So now I'm wondering if the black beads are lampwork, not blown.
I ran across a website for the Museum of Glass and Jewellery in Jablonec nad Nisou, so decided to send an email with questions and photos to the curator. I'll update here if I get a reply.

P.S. I just realized I wrote above about the “Cooperation of the lampworkers for blown beads” so I guess lampworkers made blown beads---it's getting confusing....

 

Hope they answer back. Either way, it would be useful info. And, your pix are very good!