Fostoria crystal champagne/tall sherbet glasses, Optic pattern. Set of 8.

Description

For auction is a set of 8 Fostoria crystal tall champagne/sherbet glasses. These glasses were manufactured by the Fostoria company between 1904 and 1925. Needle etched Optic pattern, stem is Greek design.
Every glass in this set is in perfect, like new condition. No chips, no cracks, no scratches. Overall height: 4 3/4". Bowl diameter: 3 3/4". Base diameter: 3 1/8". See image for size comparison with large male hand.
These glasses were made in the heyday of the speakeasy & elegant parties. These very rare glasses were produced with the
labor intensive needle etching technique (see b
elow)
. It is no longer used, so this is a rare opportunity to get a piece of museum-quality history. Fine crystal such as this rarely survive for over 100 years in such good condition, and even less often a full set of 8 glasses. Additional images can be taken upon request. As you might guess, crystal is notoriously difficult to photograph. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. The set will
not
be broken up.
The glasses will be packed very securely, double walled & double padded and
the shipment fully insured. Winning b
idder
must wait
for final invoice before payment
to in
clude accurate shipping cost and insurance.
FREE
SHI
PPING
with
Buy It Now
!
The winning Bu
y It Now
bidder must wait for a final invoice before payment is made.
Thank you for viewing my
auction and happy bidding!
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Needle Etch Glass
Needle etched glass was an acid etching technique applied glassware, typically on thin-walled hand blown glass pieces. The techniques was most widely used in the 1920s, and is most typically found in stemware. Needle etch offered a less expensive, but still high quality alternative to hand cut lead crystal. Later made pressed glass pieces with more elaborate machine automated etched designs are found in the "elegant glass" category.
In the needle etching process, a glass blank was coated with wax. A skilled setter used a complex machine to carve a repeating pattern in the glass. The glass was set in place and slowly rotated while the machines needle traced the pattern into the wax. Once the pattern was complete, a second worker repaired any spots where the wax coating had been damaged by handling. Thereafter the piece was brought to the dipping room where an acid etcher immersed the ware in a hydrofluoric acid bath. The exposed cut design was eaten away by the acid, creating the fine groove pattern of this glass. The glass was then taken to a steamer to melt of the glass, then polished.
By the 1930s needle etched glass was supplanted by the easier and less costly to produce depression and pattern glass. Companies like Fostoria, Bryce, and other earlier makers manufactured the glass.
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