Ornament / Kugel with fluorescent paint inside
Material: Glass, wire, goose feather tree branch
Origin: Gablonz, Czech
Size: 9 cm tall, 4,5 by 4,5 cm wide
Age: around 1930
Condition:
Good condition.
Description:
Decorative Christmas ornament from Gablonz, dating to the 1930s. Glass rods and beads form a delicate arrangement surrounding a large fluorescent ornament at its centre. A goose-feather sprig and fine flower stamens made of composition material complete the elaborate decoration. The combination of materials lends this piece its nostalgic charm and reflects the imaginative craftsmanship of antique Gablonz Christmas decorations. A collectable piece for enthusiasts of antique Christmas ornaments and a lovely addition to a traditional Christmas tree or goose-feather tree. Guaranteed antique – not a reproduction.
History of the production of Gablonz glass bead jewelry
The production of Gablonz glass bead jewelry has a long tradition. The historiography began around 1550 in Gablonz / Sudetenland (today's Czech Republic) and developed in connection with the jewelry and glass industry. At that time, the first glassworks were built and from these, glass grinding shops. In the countless Gablonz family businesses, the beads were blown up from glass tubes in front of an oil lamp with bellows reinforcement, or later with a type of Bunsen burner. This is how the "freehand beads" were blown up by hand without any shaping aids. Later, the glass tubes were blown up into "shaped beads", again in front of the "lamp", using a bead forming machine developed in this region. Father and grandfather were usually responsible for blowing up the beads. Mother and grandmother's busy hands then strung this bead material on wire in certain formations.
