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Opaline glass

Opaline glass is a decorative style of glass made in France from 1800 to the 1890s, though it reached its peak of popularity during the reign of Napoleon III in the 1850s and 1860s. The glass is opaque or slightly translucent, and can appear either white or brightly colored in shades of green, blue, pink, black, lavender and yellow. The glass has a high lead content which defined it as "demi-crystal" or semi-crystal. The primary influences on this style of glass were 16th century Venetian milk glass, and English white glass produced in 18th century Bristol.

Many different pieces were produced in opaline glass, including vases, bowls, cups, coupes, decanters, perfume bottles, boxes, clocks and other implements. The popularity of Opaline glass began during the reign of Napoleon. Cities involved in the production included Le Creusot, Baccarat, and Saint-Louis, Runion, as well as various locations in England.

All opaline glass is hand-blown and has a rough or polished pontil on the bottom. There are no seams and no machine engraving. Many pieces of opaline glass are decorated with gilding. Some with handpainted flowers or birds. Several have bronze ormolu mounts, rims, hinges or holders. Real opaline glass was produced only in France. In the 1900s Italy produced a similar glass and called it opaline veritable.

Most all opaline glass is not branded or signed.

Portieux Vallerysthal made lots of robin's egg blue glass they call Opaline. This was produced later and in much greater quantity and is not nearly as rare or valuable.

The two best references for French Opaline Glass are Les Opalines by Christine Vincendeau and Lpaline franaise au XIXe sicle by Yolande Amic. Both are in French.

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Glass makers and brands

Contemporary

companies

Anchor Hocking  Arc International  Ardagh  Armashield  Asahi  Aurora Glass Foundry  Baccarat  Blenko Glass Company  Bodum  Corning  Dartington Crystal  Daum  Edinburgh Crystal  Fanavid  Fenton Art Glass Company  Firozabad glass industry  Franz Mayer  Glava  Glaverbel  Hardman & Co.  Heaton, Butler and Bayne  Holmegaard Glassworks  Holophane  Hoya  Kingdom of Crystal  Kokomo Opalescent Glass Works  Kosta Glasbruk  Libbey Owens Ford  Liuli Gongfang  Iittala  Luoyang  Johns Manville  Mats Jonasson Mlers  Moser Glass  Mosser Glass  Nippon Sheet Glass  Ohara  Orrefors Glasbruk  Osram  Owens Corning  Owens-Illinois  Pauly & C. - Compagnia Venezia Murano  Phu Phong  PPG  Pilkington  Preciosa  Quinn Group  Riedel  Royal Leerdam Crystal  Saint-Gobain  Samsung Corning Precision Glass  Schonbek  Schott  Shrigley and Hunt  Steuben Glass  Sterlite Optical Technologies  Swarovski  Tyrone Crystal  Val Saint Lambert  Verrerie of Brehat  Waterford  Watts & Co  World Kitchen  Xinyi Glass  Zwiesel

Historic

companies

Bakewell Glass  Belmont Glass Company  Boston and Sandwich Glass Company  Carr Lowrey Glass Company  Cambridge Glass  Chance Brothers  Clayton and Bell  Dunbar Glass  Fostoria Glass Company  General Glass Industries  Alexander Gibbs  Grnvik glasbruk  Hazel-Atlas  Heisey  Hemingray Glass Company  Knox Glass Bottle Company  Lavers, Barraud and Westlake  Manufacture royale de glaces de miroirs  Morris & Co.  Old Dominion Glass Company  James Powell and Sons  Ravenhead glass  The Root Glass Company  Sneath Glass Company  Ward and Hughes  Westmoreland Glass Company  Whitall Tatum Company  White Glass Company  Worshipful Company

Glassmakers

John Adams  Richard M. Atwater  Frederick Carder  Irving Wightman Colburn  Henry Crimmel  Henry Clay Fry  Friedrich  A. H. Heisey  Libbey  Antonio Neri  Alastair Pilkington  Salviati  Otto Schott  S. Donald Stookey  W. E. S. Turner  John M. Whitall

Trademarks

and brands

Bohemian glass  Bomex  Burmese glass  Chevron bead  Corelle  CorningWare  Cranberry glass  Cristallo  Duran  Endural  Favrile  Fire King  Gold Ruby  MACOR  Murano glass  Opaline glass  Pyrex  Ravenhead glass  Tiffany glass  Vitrite  Vitrolite  Vycor  Waterford Crystal  Wood's glass  Zerodur

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