It was during the nineteenth century that mechanised glass-making processes reduced the cost and therefore the value of glass, making it a treasure which anyone could afford. The Americans developed machinery for pressing glass in the early 19th century,and English glass-makers were producing pressed glass by the 1830's. Pressed glass older than the 1860's is now rare.
Before gas and electricity were introduced, oil lamps with glass chimneys were widely used, and there was a huge demand for replacement glass chimneys.
George Davidson founded one of the most successful and prolific glass factories in England in response to this demand. He was a butcher in Low Fell, Gateshead, in the North East of England during the 1850's and 1860's. In 1867, at the age of 45, he decided that there was such a shortage of oil lamp chimneys he would build a glass factory in the nearby Team Valley.
Initially very successful, they went on to make a wide range of pressed glass table-ware. In the early years pressed glass was used to imitate other popular materials. They imitated cut crystal designs in clear pressed glass (which they called Flint glass).
During the 1880's Davidson's, along with several other glass factories, also made glass to look like porcelein (termed vitro-porcelein) usually in opaque white and opaque blue (like the vase above).
They also made glass to look like marble, and termed it "marble vitro-porcelein" (or sometimes marble glass or Malachite glass). The flint glass table-ware above and the marble vitro-porcelein sugar bowl below all have the Davidson's trademark or a Davidson's registration number. Marbled glass items like this sugar bowl are today often called "slag glass" because some of the effects were acheived by adding impurities to the glass such as slag from old coal and iron mines.
Glass makers in England at this time came under pressure to put a trade mark or other form of identification on their glass. Davidson's registered this trade mark, of a lion sitting up on a wall, and
used it between 1880 and 1891. They discontinued it when George Davidson died.
Any piece of glass with this trademark can be accurately dated to the period 1880 to 1891.
In 1889 Davidson's introduced one of their most popular and successful lines, a colouring which they called "Pearline". It was only made in two colours, blue and lemon yellow, each with a white edge. Pearline glass was so successful that Davidson's introduced a new suite of designs made in "pearline" almost every year until 1903, and continued production of pearline until the outbreak of the First World War (1914).
Pearline glass reacted to heat by turning
white on the parts exposed to heat during
the cooling process, a reaction caused by
the chemicals mixed into the glass
(notably arsenic). It was extremely
popular in the 1890's.
This pattern (above left) was issued by Davidson's in
1889, registration number 130643, called
the "643 Suite" by Davidson's and named
"Brideshead" by American collectors. The Pearline colour combination of a
white opalescent edge on turquoise blue
glass was almost unique to Davidson's.
Greener's (from nearby Sunderland)
produced a smaller number of patterns in
a very similar colour, and these can be identified both by the registration numbers and from pattern books and advertisements of the time.
Lemon Pearline is often called "Vaseline Glass", which is a general term used for any kind of yellow glass with an appearance similar to the old yellow vaseline ointment. This includes hand blown glass as well as the output from many factories. I have come across antique dealers calling the blue pearline "vaseline glass" but know of no justification for this.
These pieces (right) are in one of the last Pearline patterns; registered by Davidson's in 1903 registration number 413701 and named "William and Mary" by US collectors (see William Heacock's publications).
The lemon colour was produced by adding uranium to the glass mixture (in those days before people knew about bombs made from uranium). If you shine an ultra-violet lamp onto Davidson's lemon pearline glass it will glow green (fluoresce) because of these ingredients.
This design (left) by Davidsons is clear blue without the pearline white edge. It was introduced when "pearline" was becoming less popular in 1908. Its registration number was 533040, and this number was stamped into the moulds, so it can almost always be found if you run your finger gently over the glass. It was produced
in several colours (clear, blue, green, amber) and in vast quantities over a 40 year period,
from 1908 to the 1940's. In later years
the pieces often had chromium plated attachments.
The First World War marked the end of
the Art Nouveau period and also the end of the
parallel fashion for pressed glass patterns based on classical cut
crystal designs. The "Art Deco" period
in the 1920's and 30's was a period
of strong, bold colours and simple shapes. 
Cloud Glass was heavy pressed coloured glass with a small amount of darker glass added at the last minute to the molten glass to produce cloud-like streaks. Each piece was hand finished and had its own unique pattern in the glass. It was made in a wide range of shapes in amber, brown, purple, blue, green, orange, & (rarely) in red & grey.
The Davidson glass company had special links with New Zealand & Australia; the founder's brother had emigrated to Australia towards the end of the nineteenth century, and set up trade with England. At one stage a barter system was set up, with shiploads of glass going to New Zealand & Australia in exchange for shiploads of food for Britain. Cloud Glass was exported in large quantities. Many pieces were also taken overseas by emigrating families.
"Amber Cloud Glass" was the first colour
in "Cloud Glass" made by Davidson's of
Gateshead, followed in 1928 by a
transparent version, which Davidson's
called "Tortoiseshell". 
Sometimes the same mould was used with a slight modification for different pieces. For example the vases sometimes had a turnover rim and sometimes were flared.
Many people can still remember a Cloud Glass bowl taking pride of place on the family sideboard when they themselves were children. It was very practical as well as beautiful. The vases are heavy and very stable; they can hold tall top-heavy flowers without falling over. The bowls are sturdy and a delight to look at when the sun shines through the coloured glass.
Dressing table sets were popular in the
1930's, comprising a tray and containers
for things like powder, trinkets, & hair-
pins, usually with a bedroom candle stick.
The same designs were used by Davidson's for all their colours during this period. Jade Glass, black opaque glass, and several colours of clear glass, as well as all the colours of Cloud Glass were made in these same shapes.
During the Second World War Davidson's along with most other European factories, switched to war-related production; Cloud Glass was only briefly revived after the war.
Pressed glass should not
be dismissed as inevitably inferior, just because some of the cheap forms of mass produced glass are pressed. It is equally true that some
of the most expensive glass in the world is
pressed such as the glass made by Rene
Lalique in France.
For this kind of good quality pressed glass, a
work of art is first created in plaster and
then a metal mould is made from that
original model. High quality glass is then
pressed into the mould and subsequently
hand finished to ensure high quality.
After the war Davidson's, along with other glass manufacturers in Britain, had a short heyday supplying orders from overseas where demand had built up during the war years. For those first few years they were not allowed to meet orders from British retailers because the Government needed the foreign exchange. So for a few more years there was a pent up demand for glass on the domestic market, which kept British glassmakers very busy. Davidson's invested in new machinery and somehow did not foresee that their boom would only be shortlived. They ran into financial difficulties in the late 1950s and in 1966 were taken over by the company which had supplied much of the electroplate decoration which had been added to glassware in the 50s and 60s. Davidson's glassworks finally closed in 1987.
If you are looking for Davidson glass, you can usually find items on offer on ebay.
Click here to see Davidson's glass currently for sale on ebay).
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If you have enjoyed this article, you will probably find Charles Hajdamach's book British Glass 1800-1914 really interesting. It is an excellent book full of pictures and information. Click on the title or the book cover to find out more about this book, including the price and any discounts for buying it on-line. |
| INFORMATION about New Zealand Glass ! Including many original catalog pictures and dozens of photographs. NOW available - this is the first paperback edition of the book and it covers many contemporary New Zealand glass artists as well as the history of glass in New Zealand, Crown Crystal Glass and New Zealand bottles. Price US$29.90 plus pp. |
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