Standard Encyclopedia of Pressed Glass, 1860-1930: Identification & Values

by Bill Edwards and Mike Carwile

Book Overview

American pressed glass, which was at its zenith in the 1870s, entails hundreds of patterns and dozens of shapes with elaborate geometric, animal, fruit, and floral designs. Available in crystal and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1574320904
• ISBN13: 9781574320909
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: Collector Books
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 8.8" x 11.3"

Customer Reviews

Simply packed with detail

The 5th updated edition of a pressed glass classic continues to be a 'must' for any avid collector of the medium: it covers glass companies, shapes and patterns, decoration definitions and insights on table glass factories, and more, blending in history with the latest values and collecting trends. Color photos on every page make it easy to identify pieces, while accompanying descriptions comment on cuts, names, pattern development, design modifications and changes, and more. Simply packed with detail, any authoritative glass collecting collection needs STANDARD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRESSED GLASS 1960-1930. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch

A good source for identifying early pattern glass

Some of the reviews of this book surprise me. I have seen similar negative comments written about these authors on separate web sites, and no doubt the comments here are by the same people. My experience with this book is this....the main appeal to this book is that there are literally hundreds and hundreds of patterns identified, and by using the photos in this book, I've been able to identify pieces in my collection that I previously could not. Certainly I wish there was more information and detail written about each pattern...this book lists maybe a line or two about each pattern only, with no to few comments about reproductions. So, I use this book in conjunction with other pattern glass books (Reilly and Jenks, Warman's, etc) to get the most comprehensive picture I can. Some of the pictures are not super clear. Compared to other books which don't list many patterns at all and then do so in black and white or hand drawing, I'll live with it. I would imagine photographing the detail on clear glass isn't easy! I guess I'll summarize by saying that while the book is not perfect, it certainly takes a good stab at trying to organize information and photos of hundreds of pieces of glass from the turn of the century. Are there errors? Probably! But with all the fires in these glass companies over the years I am sure no one has the truth about everything.

The best general pressed glass guide for the period

One runs into a lot of pressed and pattern glass that isn't depression or carnival glass. Many examples aren't marked in any way and one has no way of knowing what they are or when they are made. This book comes to the rescue. Its format is picture after picture, most in color, with brief descriptions. So, one can peruse the pages looking for a match even if one knows absolutely nothing about a given piece. This has helped me a lot. At the end of the book are value estimates for all the patterns shown in the book. Great quality paper and good binding, so this book will last a long time with heavy use. Buy it and carry it with you so you can find out about those neat looking glass items you find but don't recognize.

a very useful reference on pattern glass

There is good general information on glass terminology and on some of the important glass makers of the era. Examples are of many different pieces and there is a very informative paragraph on each piece. Most of the photos are clear. However, my one complaint is that some of the photos, in particular of the clear glass, are not clear enough to show the details of the patterns. This makes identification nearly impossible in these cases. I still find this a helpful reference that is also readable and attractive.

Standard Encyclopedia of Pressed Glass

This book is a God send! As a new antique Glass seller and collector, I find this book to be Heavenly! It's not only packed full of Beautiful Colored Photos, but also states current values and some of the history behind these pieces of wonderful Old Pressed Glass! You Can't go wrong Buying this book! It will pay for it's self in no time!