True Amberina

True amberina is made from an amber glass batch containing dissolved gold. The item is first blown and shaped. When a portion of the glass is reheated, a red or fuchsia color develops on the part that is reheated. Except for plated amberina, true amberina is not flashed, cased, or plated. Die-away techniques are not employed in order to acheive shading.

The glass companies that made true amberina.

1. The New England Glassworks

The orginal amberina was made at the NE Glassworks from 1883-1890.

Most items are blown and shade from light amber to fuchsia red. Some items have a “venetian diamond” pattern as well as thumprint patterns. One of the most notable pressed items is a stork vase designed by Joseph Locke, who is the creator of amberina glass.

2. Mount Washington Glass Co.

Mt Washington glassworks made amberina. A lawsuit was brought against them by the New England glassworks. Mt Washington renamed it’s ware “rose amber”. Mt Washington’s rose amber ware has a color almost identical to the New England product, but in shapes that are unique to Mt Washington.

Above: Mt Washington “rose amber” vase.

3. Hobbs Brockunier and Company.

Hobbs was granted a license by the New England glass co to produce pressed amberina. All know items are in the daisy and button pattern. It did not produce blown amberina. The items are amber color with a rich fuchsia shading around the edges.

4. Gillinder & Sons

There is no record of this company being granted a license to produce amberina, but it did produce pressed amberina in the 1880’s. The shapes are different from Hobbs.

5. English firms of Stevens and Williams and Thomas Webb.

Both companies produced amberina.

6. The Libbey Glass company.

Produced Amberina for a few years around 1900, and again in 1917. The 1917 production uses unique shapes and the ware is always marked. Libbey also produced amberina vases for the 1893 World’s Fair.

7. Various European glass factories produced amberina, or an amberina-type glass.

Psuedo Amberina

Psuedo amberina is glass that acheives it’s shading from plating, flashing, or a die-away process. It is not reheated to develop color. A thin layer of gold ruby glass is plated over the top of each amber item. The color change is usually sharp. The die-away process involves joining a blob of amber glass and ruby glass, then blowing and stretching to acheive a shaded look. Hobbs produced a lot of psuedo amberina under the name of “ruby amber ware”. Many other companies in the United States an abroad, produced this type of glassware. Another type of amberina-like glass is produced by painting a colored stain on the glass and fixing it at a high temperature. The stained amberina has an unusual iridescense, and often wears off in spots.

Myths

The Boston & Sandwich glassworks never produced amberina. It did produce a flashed or stained ware that may resemble amberina.

Modern Amberina

Amberina type glass is still made today. Most items use selenium or iron instead of gold. The color is a rather harsh yellow-amber shading to deep orange or orange-red. The glass is thicker than original amberina. The new is a true shaded ware, but in appearance, it’s very different from old amberina and easy to spot. Blenko made a lot of modern amberina that they called “tangerine”. The Fenton glass company produced an amberina-type glass that has the same shading as Hobb’s ruby-amber ware. Fenton uses gold ruby glass with a die away technique to produce a glass that shades from golden amber to cranberry. The glass was called “Golden Amberina” and was made for a very short time.

Plated Amberina

The orginal plated amberina was made by the New England Glass co. in 1886-87. Cream opalescent glass was cased with gold ruby and refired to produce an amberina shading. The glassware is always ribbed. It looks similiar to wheeling peachblow, but wheeling peachblow is never ribbed and has a white, not opalescent lining. Plated amberina is thin and fragile.

In the 1960’s the Fenton glass co produced a cased glass that they called plated amberina. Selenium ruby was plated over milk glass. The glass did not shade, but was all red. It is always ribbed. In the 1970’s Fenton used gold ruby glass plated over milk glass. This produced a deep red color with a fuschia hue.

Above: Fenton “Gold Amberina”

Tips

Most modern amberina is easy to identify by it’s bright orange-red color and contemporary shapes. Victorian amberina has a rich ruby/fuchsia shading and is made of fine quality flint glass. A great deal of “amberina type” glass has been imported into the United States since the 1960s. The glass shades from cranberry to amber and may be mistaken for Hobb’s “ruby amber ware” or Phoenix glass. Authentic Victorian amberina pitchers and creamers have amber handles. Clear handles indicate a reproduction. Fenton items are marked and should not present a problem to collectors.