Featured Murano Clowns - Information Please

I don't know anything about Murano clowns or that they existed until I ran across these. I hope they are authentic, as I paid a lot of money for them. One of them has a Murano sticker and the other, a bit of round glue. They were so bright and cheerful, so I thought they would bring color to my collection. Each of them is slightly different. They look handmade from pieces. They are 8 inches tall and solid glass. Does anyone know anything about these? Any thoughts, speculations, history, whether they really Murano or fake. How are they made? Many questions. Any answers appreciated.

 

definitely Murano, not fakes

 

Someone posted a Murano fish here a while back, this is in the same vein of whimsy, and very cute! Are they about 8" tall? Or how high?

 

We haven't seen Murano clowns in quite a while. Cute!

 

Yes 8 inches. Thank you. Aparently there is a long history of these clowns but I can't find much about this to put these in that line.

 

Thanks for the hint. I check out old posts.

 

to reply to your "how" ?

you'll see an explanation in the little film here ( on the left )

same technique as your clowns

https://www.etsy.com/listing/705913978/a-venetian-18th-century-couple-figurines

 

Love it. Thanks so much for sharing this. I love art glass and it’s amazing how creative the techniques are.

 

a few years ago there was a bunch of 'Murano' glass clowns up for sale in an auction. From what I remember while researching them, the easiest way to tell if new/fake was the hands, the new/fake hands are like paddles, no real definition of the fingers. You can't really go by labels anymore as there are so many fake labels out there. There used to be couple of sites with fake labels, not sure if they are still around or not.

 

Great clues. Thank you very much. I think @Ownedbybear gave me a Facebook page where a woman was the expert on labels. I'll try to find it.
Here are some closeups of the hands. I'm not sure if this qualifies as definition of the fingers or not. They are not flat like paddles, but I don't know what level of fingerness is expected. What do you think?

 

@KikoBlueEyes you have them in hand so it is easier to see the shape/curves of them. maybe this will help, here is a link to the Murano Glass FB page, the album for genuine Murano clowns. maybe ask there about your clowns?
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.900473970743334&type=3

sorry, I'm lazy today so a quick grab from the internet, this is on pinterest but the auction is long gone

 

just saw this page, shows some clear examples of hands/fingers
https://www.realorrepro.com/article/Venetian-Glass--Lookalikes

 

This is great. It shows a clear example of hands They are definitely better than mine. Thank you. I'll ask there

 

I think yours are made on Murano, but were slightly lesser ones, if that makes sense. The colour and madness looks right and they don't look modern Asian.

 

I sold one that was the OP's identical twin clown not long ago. Went locally to another dealer for not much, but at least it was gone. I don't mind clowns, but do mind shipping glass.

 

I saw 3 Murano clowns attached to glass bowls while window shopping this morning at a charity thrift that wasn't open yet. At least 1 was very similar to your 2. They were priced at $35 each. If I can get back there tomorrow, I'll ask if they will take them out of the window so I can see if marked and if the hands are appropriate for real and not fake.

 

Thank you. I appreciate you weighing in. In following up on @cxgirl lead, the ones they were talking about, I think were older original ones. I was getting worried there, and now I feel better.

 

Thank you, Bakers. I'm trying to gather as much information as I can about these. This 1stdibs posting with one very much like mine is $896.18, so $35 may be a bargain.


Multicolored Mid-Century Modern Vintage Red Murano Glass Clown, Italy, 1950s For Sale at 1stDibs

 

I'm sure the secondary market for these is all over the place. I get very good bargains at this American Cancer shop, so I don't mind paying a premium price for an occasional item.

 

to me....similar paddle hands....
and manufacture......