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Gallery 214, American Art, second floor, Case 17, Cut Glass

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Demonstration Bowl (Blank)

1910
Made by C. Dorflinger & Sons, White Mills, Pennsylvania (1865–1921)
This bowl has four distinct sections that demonstrate the four steps necessary to create a cut glass object once the form (called a "blank") is made by a glassblower. Before the first step can take place, the glass must be completely cooled in an annealing oven.

Step 1 - Mark
A craftsman marks the pattern outlines (but not the details) on the glass with a red lead compound.

Step 2 - Cut
The rougher follows the red marks as he cuts the glass on an iron wheel being fed with sand and water, and fills in the details of the pattern. At this stage the cuts in the glass have a gray color.

Step 3 - Smooth
The smoother uses a stone wheel to smooth all the cuts. However, they are still gray in color.

Step 4 - Polish
The polisher uses a felt wheel, with pumice and water, to further refine the cuts, and uses putty powder and water with a wooden or felt wheel to transform the gray cuts into transparent brilliance.

Gallery 214, American Art, second floor, Case 17, Cut Glass

Object Details

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Gallery 214, American Art, second floor, Case 17, Cut Glass

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Museum map