One of the primary objectives of this site is to provide a site where multiple lines of glass can be researched or studied. Prior to the construction of this site, this type of resource was not available. The intent behind constructing this website is to provide a more comprehensive library of images at a single location, than was available on the internet at the initiation of the project. My hope is that it is an aid in the accurate identification of Bohemian glass.
The style of glass covered will be from the Art Nouveau to Art Deco periods, approximately 1890-1940. The defined geographical area for companies involved in this site is the region that, post WWI, was part of the newly formed country of Czechoslovakia.
I believe there is a real need for such a site, for several reasons:
1) An alarming percentage of the glass that appears on eBay, on glass dealers' websites and in auctions, and which is labeled "Loetz", was in fact produced by other, lesser known manufacturers.
2) Some of these manufacturers made glass that was comparable in quality to Loetz, and it is time that they were given wider recognition.
3) Although there is a reasonable quantity of information regarding many of these companies, much of the information is scattered and can be difficult to access. Many books contain attribution errors, and many of the better publications are hard to find, or expensive, or both.
The decision to build this site was partially motivated by the desire to allow free access to a large amount of useful and accurate information. A website was chosen due to the ability to quickly adjust attributions, or add new items, as updated information comes to light. This is quite difficult with a published books.
The primary companies covered by this project are Kralik, Loetz, Pallme-Koenig, Rindskopf, and Welz. We will also include manufacturers such as early Beranek, Ruckl, and others as information is developed.
As a result of wars and politics, many of the records for these companies are sparse or non-existent. As a result of these unfortunate circumstances, much of the information used to create this site is based on empirical research rather than hard documentation such as company production records, and will be subject to change. y
This site is a work in progress, and visitors will see additions, revisions and corrections made as new information is uncovered resulting from ongoing research in this field. Please see the "Most Recent Update" menu link for a cronology of updates which have been made.
It is our hope that as a result of our work, visitors will not only be able to identify a greater range of glass more accurately, but will also have a better idea of the types of glass being attributed to the wrong manufacturer, or erroneously attributed to this region's production.
Please see the "Useful Links" page for other sites which we have also found to be useful.
We sincerely hope that you enjoy the images and information provided here.