Ysart/Vasart YVP9 Miniature Concentric Millefiori Paperweight
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:12913085 | Country of Origin: Scotland |
| Brand: Vasart | Glassmaking Technique: Millefiori |
| Type: Vintage |
This weight is an example of a production miniature millefiori weight made by some iteration of the Ysart Brothers Glass Company. During the time that they were Strathearn Glass this design was called a P9, however weights of this sort were made through every iteration of the Ysart Brothers Glass Company, from 1947 through 1982 when the P9 disappears from the Strathearn catalog.
I believe that this particular weight was made very early, during the days when the company was call...ed the Ysart Brothers Glass Company. Accordingly, I am using the designation YVP9, following the example set by Richard More on his excellent website, strathearn.smugmug.com. The weight is 1.55" in diameter, 1.25" tall, and in perfect condition.
Several factors went into my identification. First, the glass is very slightly gray to clear, which is characteristic of weights made in the 1950s or later. By contrast, weights made in the 1930s had very gray glass, and those from 1946 through 1950 or so often have glass with a yellowish cast. This probably dates the weight to 1950 or later.
The rest of the identification relies on comparison to other weights that have been dated to a particular period. The central large cane with a solid color shape surrounded by one or two overlays is very characteristic of the Ysart Brothers examples, appears much less frequently in Vasart Glass examples, and almost never in Strathearn examples. Similarly the eight pointed star canes in the middle row appear in early examples, while later star canes more commonly have six or seven points, and do not often have a solid large star at the center of the cane as this example does. Finally, the light yellow ground in this weight appears often in early weights, but rarely in later ones.
Taken together these factors make me believe that this weight was made between 1950 and 1956. All that being said, I am no expert on Ysart/Strathearn weights in particular or Scottish weights in general, so if anyone out there has a different opinion on this attribution please let me know.
In 1947 Salvatore Ysart, along with his younger sons Vincent and Augustine, left the Moncrieff glasworks (and his eldest son Paul) to form their own company, Ysart Brothers Glass, in Perth, Scotland. They produced under the "Vasart" label, taking their initials (V, A and S) and adding "art". In 1956, the surviving founder, Vincent, partnered with George Dunlop of Pirelli Glass and the company was renamed Vasart Glass Ltd. In 1960 Stuart Drysdale, who would later found Perthshire, was hired as the business manager. In 1965 the company was acquired by Teachers Whiskey and again renamed, this time to Strathearn Glass. In 1980 the factory was taken over by Stuart Glass and renamed Stuart Strathearn Ltd. This name remained until the factory ceased production in 1992.
Item #N00053
I believe that this particular weight was made very early, during the days when the company was call...ed the Ysart Brothers Glass Company. Accordingly, I am using the designation YVP9, following the example set by Richard More on his excellent website, strathearn.smugmug.com. The weight is 1.55" in diameter, 1.25" tall, and in perfect condition.
Several factors went into my identification. First, the glass is very slightly gray to clear, which is characteristic of weights made in the 1950s or later. By contrast, weights made in the 1930s had very gray glass, and those from 1946 through 1950 or so often have glass with a yellowish cast. This probably dates the weight to 1950 or later.
The rest of the identification relies on comparison to other weights that have been dated to a particular period. The central large cane with a solid color shape surrounded by one or two overlays is very characteristic of the Ysart Brothers examples, appears much less frequently in Vasart Glass examples, and almost never in Strathearn examples. Similarly the eight pointed star canes in the middle row appear in early examples, while later star canes more commonly have six or seven points, and do not often have a solid large star at the center of the cane as this example does. Finally, the light yellow ground in this weight appears often in early weights, but rarely in later ones.
Taken together these factors make me believe that this weight was made between 1950 and 1956. All that being said, I am no expert on Ysart/Strathearn weights in particular or Scottish weights in general, so if anyone out there has a different opinion on this attribution please let me know.
In 1947 Salvatore Ysart, along with his younger sons Vincent and Augustine, left the Moncrieff glasworks (and his eldest son Paul) to form their own company, Ysart Brothers Glass, in Perth, Scotland. They produced under the "Vasart" label, taking their initials (V, A and S) and adding "art". In 1956, the surviving founder, Vincent, partnered with George Dunlop of Pirelli Glass and the company was renamed Vasart Glass Ltd. In 1960 Stuart Drysdale, who would later found Perthshire, was hired as the business manager. In 1965 the company was acquired by Teachers Whiskey and again renamed, this time to Strathearn Glass. In 1980 the factory was taken over by Stuart Glass and renamed Stuart Strathearn Ltd. This name remained until the factory ceased production in 1992.
Item #N00053
