HISTORY:
There was a time during the 1970's when we had a 'fetish' for Green glass, particulary Uranium ... this item does have some low flourescent properties, read on ...
What is 'Uranium glass' I hear you ask ....
Uranium glass has been around for many many years, particularly in the first half of the 20th century but it's production gradually lessened over the years and it is now quite difficult to find.
In 'normal' daylight, this type of glass looks vibrant and 'alive' but when exposed to UV light it becomes flourescent, meaning that it glows - usually a irridescent or neon like Green
Even without a UV light source, these types of glass tend to look "brighter, more alive" than 'standard' flat glassware. Most people don't happen to have a dedicated UV light sitting in their dining area, good old sunlight (of component of which is UV light) can also give a special 'sparkle' to the glassware - that is why this type of glass was so popular.
The downside, although it is present in minute amounts, is radioactivity! Uranium glass contains very small (actually earlier glass contained much higher levels of Uranium) amounts of Uranium - yes, the stuff nuclear bombs were created from!
Now don't panic!, your piece of tableware is not going to create a nuclear explosion of course but it is wise to be aware that radioactivity ABOVE normal background levels is most likely present. For occasional use, this glassware is considered relatively safe but frequent ingestion of liquids within a Uranium glass based item is not recommended. If you take a look around online, there is a great deal of information about the safety of these types of glass published by experts in their field.
The best idea is to treat these types of glassware as an ornament, a talking point at the dinner table or in the lounge room display cabinet.
Coming back to this Green creamer jub, I have confirmed that this glassware does in fact have some flourescence, although it is not as I would have expected ... instead of the 'neon like' Green, this glass glows a Green/Yellow colour! The intensity of the flourescence is also quote low but clearly visible - it is especially observable where the glass is thicker e.g the base.
I spent a lot of time trying to take a photograph of this Yellow/Greenish (like a egg custard colour) flourescence but my old, "technically challenged" camera was not able to take a good photograph of the flourescent effect unfortunately .... WHY?
While I have a nice strong source of UV-A light, my camera lens became 'flooded' with the visible and near-visible Blues and Purples from the UV-A and drowned out the Yellow flourescent effect!
The naked eye can see the effect (aren't human eyes wonderful?) but the camera couldn't cope with all this Blue/Purple light emitted from the UV source.
Here is a photograph of ANOTHER ITEM (not this creamer jug) which approximates what my eyes can see when the UV light is turned on ... I hope it gives you an idea the flourescent colouring ...
I believe I would need to fit a UV filter to my camera lens, well ... my camera cannot fit ANY filters or extra lens ... that's what comes with living in the 'stone age' of photography!
On with the details ...
UNIDENTIFIED MANUFACTURER - Glass Creamer Jug
I can see no manufacturer marks or stampings on this item anywhere
We had this item 'passed down' to us many moons ago, it dates from the 1950's Britain originally although I cannot establish that it was British made
Mint Green translucent glass
Cut glass which has been pressed, you can clearly see the vertical join lines on two sides.
Although I call this a Mint Green, it is lighter and 'brighter' than the leaf dish HERE - it's a funny sort of Green, quite different to other Greens ...
The design is dominated by diamond shapes, large and a smaller diamond border near the top. The top lip is scalloped. Nice wide pouring spout and cute little handle!
Measurements: 75mm jug diameter x 80mm height
Tip of the spout to the outer handle is 120mm
This is HEAVY glass, not flimsy or delicate at all and I measure a thickness of 4mm at the spout.
Weight: 250g
COSMETIC CONDITION:
USED
CLEAN
Bright, Clean transculent glass without any discolouration
NO air bubbles in the glasswork
NO cracks
NO slivers of glass
NO broken edges
NO rough edges
A very nice, attractive yet unusual piece of Green glassware from around 70 years ago! It is intriguing because while I have been examining this jug, it keeps 'catching my eye' (it is sitting alongside the computer screen) - something about that glass!
