Art Glass - A Closer Look at Burmese Feet

Authentic and Reproduction Ribbing

ACRN has written articles about Burmese art glass, and narrow ribbing on feet and handles was listed as a clue to modern reproductions. Although some original Mt. Washington pieces did have very broadly spaced ridges, tightly spaced narrow ribbing is almost always a sign of a reproduction.

Louis St. Aubin of Brookside Antiques, a nationally recognized expert in art glass, especially Mt. Washington, send ACRN a photo of an original example to illustrate the differences.

Note that the fine narrow ribbing on the new Burmese (Fig. 1) is identical. This same narrow ribbing is also found on many new Burmese handles, finials and knobs.

Original Burmese is a 19th century art glass. It was first produced by the Mt. Washington Glass Company in 1885 and later under license by Thomas Webb in England. The distinctive feature of this glass is its shading from a yellow body to salmon pink towards edges and rims. During the 1970s-early 1980s, new Burmese was widely reproduced in Italy.

Ribbing is just one test for age. Examine all features before making a conclusion.

Fig. 1 An Italian reproduction Burmese footed bowl, ca. 1970-80. Close up of fine narrow ribbing below.

Fig. 2 Compare the narrow ribbing on the reproduction to the widely spaced ridges on the original foot in Fig. 4.

Fig. 3
Most original Burmese feet are smooth but some old feet like this example do have widely spaced ridges. St. Aubin photo

Fig. 4
Widely spaced ridges on original foot from example in Fig. 3.