Here are a few of my miniature Dutch apothecary onions. They are definitely Dutch made, but were found as a single cache in India (India belonged to the Dutch before the British). I have spent many hours studying these under magnification. I believe they all come from a single glasshouse and represents part of one days work by two glass blowers, a master and an apprentice. I surmise this because there are two different styles and levels of workmanship amongst all of the vials. One set is made, for the most part, in the more expensive glass and has beautiful form and the ancient style rolled over lips. The second set is cruder in form, made in the more common forest glass, and has the common 18th century lip finish. Mark and I have had a debate over the probable age of these vessels. I believe they come from the transition between the 17th and 18th centuries, the period of the decline of Facon de Venise when it became amazingly clear (probably in an effort to save it), and the rise of all things British. My evidence is fourfold: 1). The fact that the rolled over lip is still present in some of the vials. 2). The fact that some of the vials are made of Facon de Venise. 3). The fact that a very few of the vials are made in a very expensive shade of blue that was present in more expensive 17th century Dutch glass (see Rainer Kosler, FLASCHE, BOTTLE, UND BOUTEILLE page 219 and Willy Van den Bossche, ANTIQUE GLASS BOTTLES, page 115). 4). The fact that, in The Netherlands, this form is generally from the late 16th and 17th centuries. My romantic version is this: An apprentice was commissioned to make a rather large order of these vessels, all in one day, and all for one client. He made the vast majority of them in a crude form using common yellow and aqua forest glass. At the end of the day the master blower made a few of them in forest glass, in Facon de Venise, and in the Blue glass to use up some of the remnant of those glasses left in their pots.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 19:29:12 +0000
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