News

We are excited to introduce nine new Loetz decors, three of which were identified and submitted by fellow collectors from around the world, one from the USA and two from Germany. We are also pleased to add a new section on Museums to Loetz.com. Here we will list museums that feature Loetz art glass in their permanent collections. This section will be a work in progress as we continue to add information on museums of interest to Loetz collectors. Enjoy!

New Decors

1) PG 7579 – The original example that we had in this decor was thought to be a PG 7499 and was placed on the site in this category. While it always looked a bit different, we chalked it up to photography. Then we found another example in the same shape, PN I-7579, and the production notes confirmed our suspicions that the “thumb print” design on these two examples were a different decor entirely.

2) PG 7766 – This decor was identified by a collector who was doing research to locate the production number for a crete Papillon vase that she had recently purchased. When she located the Bakalowits shape, PN 85/3693, she noticed that a “bronce PG 7766” was included in the production notes. She then recalled that a CW article posted a year earlier presented a bronce example in the same shape, and, voila, we have a newly identified decor! Thanks, Jill and Tomasz, for letting us share your story!

3) PG 8353 – While researching the production notes for a lamp shade, this collector came across PN II-8353 and noticed that the paper pattern not only provided a drawing showing the identical design of the decor on her shade but also a description that matched exactly to her example. This is great Loetz research!

4) PG 85/3839 – A paper pattern of a lampshade showing this decor along with a description of the ground colors, spreading dark blue & spreading dark green, is shown in “Loetz Bohemian Glass 1880-1940” published by Hatje Cantz on p. 310. Later research provided documentation that this decor was also produced in opal and Thea grounds.

5) PG 85/5054 – A paper pattern of a lampshade showing PG 85/5054 along with the description: ground colors, gray, ozone; decorated with silver-yellow band and dots, is shown in “Loetz Bohemian Glass 1880-1940” published by Hatje Cantz on p. 311. Many photographic candidates for this decor were available in our library and several of these were included in our “Unknown PG” section and labeled “possibly PG 85/5054”. It wasn’t until recently that we were able to obtain an example with a gray ground in PN II-85/5054 that helped us to definitively document this decor.

6) Titania Gre. 2514 – This rare Titania genre was discovered by Volkmar Schorcht, a fellow collector and researcher of Bohemian art glass from Germany.

7) Titania Gre. 4615 - We are pleased to present another rare and beautiful Titania Genre recently discovered and identified by Warren Gallé.

8) Ausf 276 – The only reference to Ausf 276 is located at the end of “Band 2, Katalog der Musterschnitte” on p. 589 under the section “Printed Pattern Sheets”. This 1927 Loetz decor is comprised of vases and bowls in various colors that exhibit a specific cut flower design, “Blumenschliff 333”. Thanks go to Warren for finding examples that match the paper patterns for this decor.

9) Mercur/Merkur – This decor must have been very popular because it is mentioned over 90 times in Loetz archived production notes from 1898 – 1908. Examples of this decor are hard to photograph and tend to look similar to both Norma and Silberiris. The basic characteristic differentiating this decor is a green ground with a dense silver-yellow opaque finish that has a bluish cast to it along with an orange liner that can be seen at the rim. This decor is often decorated in gold relief with a specific decoration (DEK) assigned. The production notes where Mercur (also spelled “Merkur”) are mentioned often include “Blau Iris”. Thanks to our extensive photo library, we were able to find several examples of these two decors in the same shape which helped us identify the Merkur decor.

We are pleased to introduce a new decor, Ausf 181, plus two decor updates and 2 new articles on Loetz.com!

1) The discovery of Ausf 181 went through many trials before examples could be officially documented for this decor.  A photograph for a lamp base that matched the drawing shown on PN III-1206/I was the clue that finally unlocked this mystery.  As soon as this example surfaced, we were able to match photographic examples in this decor with documented shapes and corresponding production notes.  Thank you, Warren, for all of your efforts and research work to document this decor. 

2) Sometimes instead of discovering a new decor, we find that corrections and updates need to be made to earlier decor assignments.  This is the case with Juno and Ausf 244.

Juno - The decor description given in Cantz (pg. 306, B136) for this decor is found under PG 2/450: "Crete (= Juno) or cobalt ground." A more detailed decor description is provided in Band 1: "trailing colorless threads and silver-yellow bands pulled and molded into a six-part fountain like pattern." The cobalt examples shown for PG 2/450 on Loetz.com match this description.  However, upon closer inspection we discovered that the examples previously shown for "Juno" were not Crete nor did they exhibit "trailing colorless threads".  We have therefore removed "Juno" from the Decors A-Z section and placed all of these "Russian Green" examples in with the PG 2/450 Decor Variant examples. If anyone has a Crete example of PG 2/450 that also exhibits the colorless threads, please send us a photo so we can restore this decor to the site.

Ausf 244 - While researching the production numbers for Ausf 244, we noticed that all of the production notes for Ausf 244 indicated that this decor was made "mit Kakteen" ("with cacti" - plural for cactus). Up to this point, examples shown for Ausf 244 were ones that exhibited the later execution of a peacock eye and feather decoration. We researched the known shapes showing the peacock eye and feather decoration and learned that this decor was called "Pfaufedern". Therefore, all of the Ausf 244 examples previously shown have now been move to the Decors A-Z section and listed by their correct name, Pfaufedern.  Thank you, Bill Fitzsimmons, for bringing this decor update to our attention. Now, we all need to be on the lookout for Loetz examples made with cacti!

3) An article about the designer, Marie Kirschner, has been written by Tony Ellery and added to the "Designers" section of the site.  New information has also been added to the Franz Hofstoetter article regarding the ongoing research of the two spellings of his last name. (See the "Footnote" in this article).

4) An interesting and informative article about the Loetz cameo production has been written by Warren Gallé and can be found in the Featured Articles section on the site.  This article not only provides an in-depth look into the cameo and acid cutback decorations produced by the Loetz glassworks but it also reveals many examples not seen or known before Warren's extensive research on this topic. 

70% of those who visited Loetz.com and took our survey indicated that they are “collectors”. When asked: “What additional services would you like to see on our website?”, over 42% indicated that they would like to see a section that included “Guest articles written by glass experts/collectors”.  

In response to this request we have added a new section: “Featured Articles”.  One of the first articles written for this new section is by Warren Gallé, Jr. It is an interesting read on the history of the English registration mark, Rd 76057, which has been found on some Octopus and Victoria vases. If you would like to submit an article that would be of interest to other Loetz collectors, please contact us.

We have also added another section that will discuss the various Loetz, “Designers” and their importance and impact on the production of Loetz art glass. This section will be growing as Tony Ellery adds the new articles that he is working on to this section.

In our “Identifying Loetz Art Glass” section we have added two articles on “Loetz Signatures”. These articles cover the signatures, marks and labels that Loetz applied to their glass Pre & Post 1918.

We are also pleased to bring you two new decors: Ausf 123 & Spiralglas. Enjoy!

Finally, the Loetz Advisory group is delighted to be able to donate our time to conduct research and add new content, but everyone’s help is needed to keep this site a non-for-profit endeavor with free access to all visitors 24/7. If you agree and haven’t already done so, please click the “Donate” button at the top of our home page. Your contribution helps to save the history of this amazing art glass and makes this information available to everyone. Thank You!

You've seen these before but now you will know their names! (click decor name to see more examples)

It’s been a year since we last posted a decor update on Loetz.com.  During this time the Loetz Advisory Group has been busy researching and documenting new decors. We also upgraded site security and added software that will provide daily backups of the 5,000 photos uploaded to the site.  These improvements were not only important but expensive and could not have been possible without the generous contributions from our donors: Edna Schuligoj, James D. Julia Inc., Frank Ford, John Fitzgerald, David Littlefield, Steve Smith, Simon Wilson and Warren Gallé. “Thank You!” for supporting Loetz.com and helping to keep this website free and accessible to anyone seeking information about Loetz art glass!

New Ausfuehrung

Ausf 1 – The previous photo example for Ausf 1 was replaced thanks to an astute collector, Volkmar Schorcht, who provided us with the correct example for this decor.

Ausf 14 – This decor is comprised of a white marmorirt ground and green, red or hyacinth clover leaf applications. With the discovery of this decor, we learned that “white marmorirt” consists of an opal ground with green Titania threads.

Ausf 15 – The only difference between this decor and Ausf 14 is that the ground is yellow marmorirt. Here “yellow marmorirt” does not have Titania threads but rather resembles the early Loetz marmor productions.

Ausf 25 – Having photos of this decor that matched several production numbers helped us to further document that “white marmorirt” includes Titania threads.

Ausf 26 – We were able to document Ausf 25 with the required two “silver-bullet” standard (A “silver bullet” is defined by the Loetz Advisory group as a photo of a piece in the decor that we are researching that matches a specific production number exactly both in shape and size, and the decor is listed in the production notes), but we could not find a photo example for Ausf 26 in our photo library. Then it occurred to us that there was a possibility that examples of Ausf 26 might have been identified as being made by another glass house like Poschinger. Once we began a search for examples of Ausf 26 under "Poschinger", we were able to find five “silver-bullets” for this decor.

Ausf 33 – A collector from France contacted us inquiring about a recent purchase and sent several photos asking if we could help him identify the decor and/or PN for his piece which was an exquisite egg! We were able to find the PN for his piece but the PN did not reveal the decor. With further research and a process of elimination, we were able to determine that the ground, white marmorirt, and color combination of the applications on his egg were the same as those found on Ausf 25. The difference was that the applications applied on the egg were considered "branches" whereas for Ausf 25 they were intertwining threads so this difference helped us determine that his egg was an example of Ausf 33.

Ausf 75 – These examples were originally classified as Ausf 64. Based on information contained in Series II, we learned that the difference between Ausf 75 and Ausf 64 is that Ausf 75 is a “Titania” Perlglas. Also, thanks to the photo example of Ausf 64 in PN II-5294, provided by Rosa Maria Tomás, we were able to document the shape of her piece and discover the differences between these two Perl glass decors.

Ausf 154 – Sometimes one photo can be the “silver-bullet” that helps to solve a decor mystery! Thanks to Penny who shared her photo of PN II-8142 with us, we were able to find another photo and shape to finally document this decor.

Ausf 155 – By discovering one decor, another decor is often revealed at the same time. We had photos of two different decors in the same shape and size as PN II-5220/8”. This paper pattern listed two decors, Ausf 154 & 155, in the production notes. After noting the description in Cantz for Ausf 155 and having another example of Ausf 155 owned by Marty Hoenig provided to us also for comparison, we were able to finally differentiate between Ausf 154 & 155!

Ausf 177 – Not only were we able to match several PN’s with photo examples for this decor, but we were also able to find PN’s with the decor actually drawn on them.

New Decors A –Z

Crete mit Zickzack Auflagen - We had two photo examples in PN II-725 & 734 in Crete that were decorated with glass threads in a "Zickzack" pattern. We noticed that this "Zickzack" feature was also drawn on two paper patterns, PN II-723 & 724.  Then we came across two production numbers in this same Series, PN II-729 & 731, that indicated these were made “without zickzack". We now had the word "Zickzack", the ground color and instructions to produce a vase in this color but without the "Zickzack" feature!  Knowing that all of the PN's associated with this "zickzack" feature (photos, drawings and production instructions) were clustered within a narrow PN series which is typical of Loetz productions, the "Zickzack" feature became a new decor.

Helios – There are only 11 PN’s published from all of the Loetz archives that mention the Helios decor. Thanks to our in-depth photo library and the diligent research of our Loetz Advisory Group, we were able to document this rare decor.

Silberstreifen – Thanks to permission granted to Loetz.com to use photos taken of pieces on exhibit at the wonderful Passau Glass Museum, we have been able to document many new decors over the years. Silberstreifen is an example of this collaboration between the PGM and Loetz.com. Based on two examples on exhibit at the PGM that matched two PN’s, specifically III-613 & 1914, we were able to document the Silberstreifen decor.

Zickzackoptisch – Finding two photo examples that matched two production numbers, specifically PN III-1821 &1920, that each listed “zickzackoptisch” as being produced in those shapes allowed us to document this decor.

New Phaenomen Genre

PG 4471 – This decor was documented based on PN II-4471 which is a lamp shade. The photo of the lamp shade in PN II-4471 shows a drawing of this decor on the paper pattern. This PN not only lists PG 4471 as the decor that was produced in that shape but also describes the decor as having an "ivory ground with silver dust and decorated with spun leaf-green and silver threads". Viola, PG 4471!

New Titania

Titania Gre. 4614 – While this decor is mentioned in Cantz, we had never seen a photo example of it until a dealer sent us one from a show that he attended! Thank you, Tony!