PCA Convention, May 18-21, 2005:

Our Journey to “PaperweightMecca”

by Stanley B. Kruger

For those of mature years, doing something for thevery first time is often quite pleasurable (if not toostrenuous physically). When those of matureyears are, like Toby and me, avid paperweightcollectors, their first ever visit to the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum in Neenah, WI is more thanpleasurable…it is a religious experience, arevelation, a journey to the mountaintop to viewbeyond the peak!

Once before, Toby and I had the opportunity, throughJune Morfe’s August 1994 four day excursion fromBaltimore to Chicago, to include Bill Volkman’s

comprehensive collection of English paperweights,the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum, the RubloffPaperweight Collection at the Chicago Art Instituteand the Lotton Art Glass Studio, to visit theBergstrom-Mahler but we were then paperweightnovices and would not have reveled in, or benefitedfrom, the experience as we did during this PCA,Inc. Convention, eleven years later. Indeed, nowthat we have been shown the way, an annual“Pilgrimage to Mecca” may be contemplated!

With Registration scheduled from 10 AM to 7 PMon Wednesday, May 18, Convention, this year’stheme “A Special Time for Friends andPaperweights”, was to begin at 7 PM that eveningwith a four hour Dealer Fair, followed by an ArtistShowcase from 8 to 9:30 PM, and the printedschedule in our handsome Convention loose-leafnotebooks urged attendees to “Visit the Museum”during that day. Anticipating this, our travel day

Vice President

OPEN

TreasurerDON FORMIGLI

455 Stonybrook DriveLevittown, PA 19055

(215) 945-5253

PresidentSTANLEY B. KRUGER5 Johnson LaneVoorhees, NJ 08043(856) 751-7720stanleyk2@comcast.net

SecretarySUSAN SUTTON708 Old Westtown RoadWest Chester, PA 19382(610) 692-7204

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Volume 12 Number 3 www.dvpaperweights.org June, 2005

The Bergstrom-Mahler Museum, Neenah, Wisconsin.

was Tuesday, May 17, flying via US AirwaysExpress from Philadelphia to Milwaukee, WI, thendriving a rental car 110 miles north to Appleton’sRadisson Paper Valley Hotel, at 333 West CollegeAvenue, in the heart of downtown. Did you knowthat Lawrence University (the reason for “CollegeAvenue”), only five blocks east of the Radisson, is thesecond oldest coeducational college in the U.S. and thatAppleton is the third largest metropolitan area in the state?One learns these interesting bits of data by taking the timeto read the promotional brochures included in Conventionregistration packets, which we collected at 10 AM onWednesday. In doing so, we missed the complimentary10:30 AM shuttle bus and drove over to the Museum on ourown, arriving around 11:20.

Located on the western shore of Lake Winnebagoat 165 North Park Drive in Neenah, WI, sevenmiles from Appleton in an area known as the FoxCities, the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum began lifeas the John Nelson Bergstrom Art Center in 1954.Mrs. Evangeline Bergstrom bequeathed thepaperweight collection but it was the decision ofJohn Nelson, her husband, to bequeath theirmansion along with Evangeline’s collection to theCity of Neenah. Another couple, Ernest and CarolMahler, after John Nelson’s death in 1951, wereinstrumental in the Museum’s success when theyboth served, individually, as President and thendonated their splendid Germanic glass collectionand their name to the Museum. See the Museumwebsite, http://www.paperweightmuseum.com/,

for more background information.

Not realizing that the Museum was conducting sixCollector “Hands-On” Sessions, three on May 17and three on May 18 (my error, as they wereadvertised), on Monday, May 16 I had sent out anemail message to DVPCAers attendingConvention that there would be an informalmeeting at 4 PM on May 18 in the hotel lobby “todiscuss strategy regarding the collaborationbetween DVPCA and Wheaton Village on WV’sPaperweight Event 2006”. So, our time at theMuseum on Wednesday was regrettably short,returning us to the Radisson at 3:30 PM. But inthe 3.5 hours we were in the Museum, wemanaged an overview of: Mrs. Bergstrom’soriginal collection of 630 paperweights; some ofthe later-donated 1600 weights that enhance theoriginal bequest; “Perthshire Paperweights 2002---The Final Chapter”, examples of the AnnualEditions, Limited and Unlimited Editions, LittleGems and Related Objects proposed for issue in2002 but never made, as the factory closed itsdoors forever on January 26 of that year;“Immersions: The Glass Art of Rick Ayotte”, aspectacular display of large bowls incorporatinglampwork décor; and “Uncovering theUncommon: The Perthshire Legacy”, amagnificent exhibit of mostly very large uniqueweights made for special occasions andindividuals and never offered in Perthshire’sAnnual Catalogs. The latter two exhibits were

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(L-R) Anne Smith, CA, Gay Taylor, NJ, Sumner Reid, PA (back to camera), Denise Brown, TN, unidentified first-time Conventioneer, Leslie Smith, TX.

special, set up only for the week of Convention.Oh, yes, and we also made time, twice, for theMuseum Shop, once upon entering and once justbefore leaving the Bergstrom-Mahler Museumthat day.

Back at the Radisson, Toby and I led a one hourmeeting on organizing Paperweight Fest 2006 atWheaton Village with Nancy Alfano, Brian andSuzanne Landis, Bill Price and PatAckerman…even have notes from themeeting…and scheduled another meeting for 8AM on Friday, to report on the response to “Savethe Date” cards provided by Wheaton Villageannouncing the event.

At 7 PM, we were dressed (that is, Toby was) andback downstairs in the Conference Center of thehotel for the opening of Dealer Fair, across fromthe PCA’s Hospitality Suite. Thirteen dealerswere set up: Gary McClanahan, R & S Treasures(Ron Roberts), Ray Metcalfe of SweetbriarGallery, Chester, England, Drew Ebelhare, BobBanford, Harvey and Doris Robinson, NancyAlfano of Portia Paperweights, Gem Antiques(Jack Feingold), Roger Jacobsen, Leo Kaplan,Ltd., Bill Pitt, Paul Dunlop and Dan and ThereseMcNamara. Also located in the Dealer Fair weretwo special exhibit cases, one for the itemssubmitted by attendees for Saturday morning’s IDClinic and another for The Gillinder Project, aboutwhich more later.

Our printed Conventionschedule showed DealerFair open from 7 – 11 PMeach evening and from 1-5PM on Saturday, when itwas open to the public.Larry Selman, the 14thdealer at Convention, hadlocated his display in aseparate room across fromDealer Fair and was open 7to 11 PM, Thursday andFriday 11 AM – 11 PM and11–5 PM on Saturday. Theten artists briefly showingtheir work that eveningwere located in the room

next to the Dealer Fair. Toby and I had examinedmost of the offerings in both Fairs by 10 PM andwere back in our second floor room for the nightby 10:30.

I must say a word about the Convention loose-leafnotebooks collected at Registration. Quite similarto the loose-leaf notebooks of the 2003 SanAntonio Convention, this compilation ofnecessary information was extremely wellorganized and, best of all, contained summaries,with color photographs, of the major addressesthroughout Convention. I believe thesenotebooks, with their permanent record ofConvention presentations, were the valuableinnovation of one man, William Drew Gaskill,PCA’s Education Director in 2003 and currentPCA, Inc. President. Through them, Conventionattendees have a permanent record of thisConvention to which they can refer in future. Andthese loose-leaf notebooks were in addition to abi-fold packet containing brochures about thelocal area, logistical matters relevant toConvention (invitation to Bergstrom-MahlerReception on Thursday, details of “Dutch TreatDinners” on Friday, description of two limitededition Convention Commemorative Weightscommissioned by the Museum Shop at theMuseum, etc.), maps of the Fox Cities ofWisconsin, plus a box of 70 2-ply white tissuefrom the Museum with enlargements of fourclassic era weights on its sides in the PCA-logoedblue and white canvas carry bag, taken together an

enormous achievementand indicative of excellentplanning and coordinationover the years leading upto this Convention.

Three full hot buffetbreakfasts, two boxlunches and the closingBanquet were included inthe Convention fee of$195. So, the nextmorning saw Toby and meat 8 AM breakfast at TheOrchard, thebreakfast/lunch diningarea on the main lobby

3(continued on page 9)

Rosann Milius, President, Evangeline Bergstrom (Wisconsin) PCA

Review of EventsSpring Meeting, April 16, 2005

Forty-eight DVPCA members and guests enrolled fortoday’s meeting at Williamson Restaurant, Horsham,PA, our usual venue, and all showed up! ThePaperweight Fair, at 10 AM, offered DVPCA T-shirts forsale, $8, newsletters from other local PCAs, four tablesof weights and weight-related items (books, jewelry,etc.) for sale or display by members, Today’s RafflePrizes, two Silent Auction items, Free-Take-One items,selections from the DVPCA Lending Library that couldbe borrowed and a sumptuous exhibit of paperweightsby Guest Dealers Dan and Therese McNamara of SealHarbor, MA. All these treats were perused whileattendees enjoyed muffins, coffee and tea.

Our President called the meeting to order at 10:55 AM,a bit early due to the full program scheduled. As alead-in to the morning program, President Stan Krugernoted that a recent newspaper article described threeauction services that list items on eBay for you. Hethen introduced loyal member Martin Mikelberg whopresented the morning program, Part IV of his series,“You, Your Collection andeBay”. Marty noted that theauction services mentionedwould take a 10-30%commission as their fee forservices rendered so headvised listing the item(doing the research andtaking the pictures) yourself.The FBI reports that fraud inInternet sales has increased30% in the past year, and70% of the Internet IS sales,so beware! However, Martyavers, eBay is here to stayand has no close competition.eBay works well for Marty,even cross-referencing, i.e.,listing all other items he has

for sale and advising the potential buyer of them. Heemphasized that the quality of the picture isparamount! Use a good camera, take a close-up of theitem and show and describe any defects; otherwise adissatisfied buyer will return it. You must havesoftware installed on your computer that will enhanceyour photos as well as a high speed modem. There areshipping and handling issues to be considered and youcan allow the buyer to select the mode, and thereforethe cost, of shipping.

You should check emails regularly, in order to answerqueries promptly. A good feedback rating is veryimportant; some potential buyers will not bid if youhave no feedback rating, or negative feedback. GuestDealer Dan McNamara recommended that you take atleast three views of your item, front, side and back.Marty cautioned about a scam where a fraudulent selleruses photos from another website when listing an item.If you win this item, the seller does not have it to sendto you and you will lose your money! Dale Murschellpointed out that a seller is obligated to list an item’sdefects because a buyer cannot actually inspect thepiece. Too, there have been times when a buyerreturned for refund a different, and defective, itemfrom that sold. A potentially dangerous practice is“selling short”, listing an item found in a store, hopingthe winning bid will go above the store’s retail price.If that happens, the seller buys the item and sells it at aprofit to the winning bidder. Dale Murschell noted thatPayPal guarantees refunds to customers dissatisfieddue to non-receipt, taking the money from the seller’saccount, even without the seller’s permission. Thus,some sellers will not use PayPal. Andy Dohan addedthat PayPal can freeze your account for six to 12

months to resolve problems,during which time youcannot access your money.Dale offered that eBay’srates have increased recentlybut although he researchedhe found no viablealternative to the auctionsite. And Marty doesn’trecommend Kovel’s site.Andy recommends a sitethat gives you a thirty dayhistory (down from sixmonths). Joe Freeze told ofan incident where someonebroke into a friend’s on-lineaccount, listed items for salethrough that account, andthe friend’s checking

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Spring Meeting, April 16, 2005: (L-R) Rosalyn Heith, JillBauersfeld, Jim Perna, Bill Bauersfeld, Jim Lefever.

account was tied up for some time thereafter. Dalewarned that he has had trouble with California buyersbut President Stan insisted that all Californiapaperweight buyers were “straight and true”! Martyagreed that California bottle people are, too. JoeFreeze advised to always ensure when mailing theitem. Marty agreed and added that you should gettracking, too. Marty warned that geriatric buyers canbe problematical, so learn the rules first! Andyrecommended using BidPay, not PayPal becauseBidPay will not tie up your account and they mail acheck rather than send funds electronically. Martynoted that in six years he has never had a personalcheck bounce and concludedat 11:35 AM to applause.President Stan then, as lunchwas 25 minutes away,released the attendees,exhorting them to “buy, buy,buy”.

Lunch was the usual deliciouschoice of chicken or fishentrée. Today’s Raffle ticketswere sold during dessert. At1:05 PM, Stan called themeeting to order once again.Many announcementsfollowed. Larry Selman’sSpring auction closes forinitial bids on April 26 andLarry has another auction set

for May 7, the Steven Lundberg Legacy Auction. Atthe Winter Meeting on January 29, ten memberssigned up for on-line newsletters. Stan received threeresponses regarding the Internet-transmitted March2005 Newsletter, all positive and praising the color.Stan again urged members to sign up for on-linenewsletters for the many obvious benefits: They saveDVPCA time, effort and money and come to themember faster, more legible (larger type in the PDF),in full color and more easily stored on the computer’shard drive. The Garden Party/Catered Cookoutfollowing our Summer Meeting on July 16 will behosted by Andy and DeeDee Dohan at their lovely

home in Wayne, PA.BRING a folding chair foryourself! Our Presidentrecently met a descendant ofthe Dorflinger family.Christian Dorflingerestablished his first glassfactory in Brooklyn, NY in1852 and in 1861 relocatedthe Dorflinger Glassworksto White Mills, PA, makingthe finest cut glass crystalvessels into the 1920s. Mostfamily members worked inthe glass business, as didDavid, who was a cutter. OnSunday, July 17, our groupwill visit two glass museumsin New Jersey, the Heritage

5

GEORGE KAMM PAPERWEIGHTS

George Kamm, Proprietor

FOR AN INTERESTING ARRAY OF PAPERWEIGHTS

VISIT www.artglass-pottery.com

www.roslynroseantiques.comAntique & Contemporary Paperweights

Visit Our Newly Re-Designed SiteAnd

Receive Free Shipping With Your FirstOnline Purchase.

Use Source Code 2463 at Checkout.

ROGER JACOBSENBuying, Selling and Appraising

Antique and Contemporary Paperweights

P.O. Box 489 1511 Desert Willow DriveSandwich, MA 02563 Carlsbad, NM 88220508-888-7591 505-885-9487(May-October) (November- April)

Enjoying a laugh: Delania Lefever, John Hawley, April 16, 2005.

— W A N T E D —D O R F L I N G E R G L A S S PA P E RW E I G H T S

Will send or email pictures for comparison.Contact: FRANK H. GARDNER

631 Susquehanna Street Forest City, PA 18421Tel. (717) 785-3621 Email: fgardner@nep.net

G. W. McCLANAHANAntique & Contemporary Glass Paperweights

9697 La Mora Circle - Fountain Valley, CA 92708(800) 795-1486 or (714) 964-2599

FAX (714) 378-9908gwmcclanahan@earthlink.net

Glass Museum in Glassboro,NJ and the Museum ofAmerican Glass in WheatonVillage, Millville, NJ, as partof our 13th AnniversaryCelebration Weekend.

The issue of past-due dueswas raised since almost one-third of the membership hadnot paid yet for 2005. Infuture, we will issue the duesbill earlier, in September orOctober of the year before thedues are due. It wassuggested that we post thenames of non-payingmembers on the meetingroom door, but Treasurer DonFormigli advised that all those attending today werepaid up members. Many, though not all, unpaidmembers live at a distance and do not attend meetingsregularly.

Recently we received a request from a lady in Utah foran appraisal of an inherited paperweight collection.Stan referred her to Ken Brown. Ken told her about hisfamily’s auction business and sometime later verballyappraised the collection brought East by her sister. Itwas small but excellent; a rare dated 1847 mini-Baccaratclosepack was the first item unwrapped! The ladydecided to leave the weights for auction by the BrownBrothers auction house in Buckingham, Bucks County,PA and Ken will let DVPCA know the date set for theauction. All this occurred because the lady foundDVPCA’s website and madethe inquiry and because shedid, the weights will beauctioned locally and mayeven stay local when sold!

On another matter, TobyKruger handed out copies ofa proposal from WheatonVillage that DVPCA andWheaton partner to produce aPaperweight Event in May2006. Paperweight Weekend,once Wheaton’s top fundraiser, has been a losingproposition in recent years.Wheaton is asking for staffsupport in organizing,promoting, coordinating and

publicizing such Event inhopes of returning the Eventto profitability; not formoney. Last year’s SmallGlass Works Weekend wasthe worst attended and thebiggest loser of all theWeekends and Wheaton’sadministration realizes itmust take a different tack.They were hampered lastyear by reduced staff time,which continues, and a latemarketing effort. Ideally,Wheaton would likeDVPCA to provide a nucleusof attendees at the Event,perhaps by scheduling ourSpring Meeting 2006 during

the Event. Andy Dohan suggested two reasons whyattendance at Paperweight Weekend has declined sincethe mid-1990s: Conventions are no longer the onlyway new information is disseminated. There are morebooks available now and the Internet is another vastsource of information. Also, Conventions andWeekends were the venues for shopping from dealers;now eBay provides that venue. Perhaps all artsinstitutions are experiencing the same decline; eventhis year’s PCA Convention may suffer. However,Guest Speaker Don Friel, of Wheaton Village, notedthat WV’s Marble Weekend, only three years old, isburgeoning, growing by leaps and bounds, as marblesare cheaper than weights and attract a younger crowd.

Are enough of our members willing to volunteer laborand time to resuscitate aPaperweight Event atWheaton Village in May2006? WV has offered us10% of any profit. Toby K.noted that 2006 will be the200th anniversary ofglassmaking in Millville, NJand that might provide agreat marketing hook and acause for celebration. Therewill be a special exhibit atthe Museum of AmericanGlass next year on thissubject. Stan asked for ashow of hands from thosewho would volunteer tenhours to this project.Eighteen held up their hands

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Guest Dealers Dan and Therese McNamara, with a small sectionof their display, April 16, 2005.

Another section of the McNamara display, April 16, 2005.

and later signed up. BoydEngland asked how manywould give 40 hours of theirtime. About ten held up theirhands. No one responded tothe negative question of whodidn’t want to partner withWheaton Village for thisproject, so it was concludedthat DVPCA will take it on.

At 2 PM, Today’s Rafflewinners were chosen and 13happy winners selected fromamong many excellent prizes.Then, 35 minutes behindschedule, Stan introducedDonald W. Friel, a native ofPhiladelphia and currentlyStudio Manager and Head Gaffer at Wheaton Village’sT.C. Wheaton Glass Studio. Don started at WV as apotter around 1977 but after two years gravitatedtoward glass. He now leads a team of permanentStudio workers (Joe Mattson, Jennifer Pagliarini, etc.)as well as numerous interns who sojourn at WV forthree month terms. Today, Don, as requested by Stan,will narrate a videotape of himself on the subject “Howto Make a Crimp Rose Paperweight” (and some timelater will have copies of the videotape for sale). Don’sdetailed process follows:

To make leaves, Don picks up white glass and appliesan overlay of green, using tools that are over 100 yearsold. He applies three to four coats of green glass chipswith no layers of clear between the green. He addsveins to his leaves; old leaveslack this feature. The veinsare created automatically byhis crimp; the high pointsstay darker. He then pulls theoverlaid glass into a long thin(1/4”) strand and breaks it inhalf for manageability. Heheats the leaf crimp to reducestress on the glass, thensqueezes the glass rod endwith the crimp. He makes 50or so leaves at a sitting, thenmatches sizes, as he uses fourleaves per rose. (Don notedthat Chinese roses are gettingbetter; they are made withthin crimps.) The four leavesare placed on a hot plate to

keep them warm and then hestarts on the rose.

Don has made rose weightsfor ten years, probably ten ayear, four or five of whichare good enough to sell.Don makes many other glassvessels and glassconstructions at WV andtoday had brought roseweights and vases fordisplay and sale, includingthe rose he made for thevideotape. He has three rosecrimps; one is made of metalsheet from a Contadina canset in plaster. Don foundout, the hard way, that if he

heats the glass too much it will fuse with the metal ofthe crimp. He uses a pad of wet newspaper in his handto shape the molten glass. For the rose, Don gatherswhite glass on the punty rod and rolls it in ruby frit andthen in coarse ruby powder, as fine as talcum powder.He preheats everything whenever possible to avoidchill marks on the glass. The hardest part is pushingthe crimp into the clear glass, keeping it centered, sincethe slug of clear is not much bigger around than thecrimp itself. The rose thus sits very near the edge ofthe clear glass at this point in the process.

(Stan interjected that the value of a rose paperweight isin the skill of the maker, not the cost of the glass. Heasked Don who the best modern crimp rose maker wasand Don answered Oscar “Skip” Woods. Skip Woods

visited DVPCA in October1996 and showed anddescribed his weights. Seepictures in DVPCA’sMemories Photo Album,Volume 1.)

Air left in the glass from thecrimping process must beworked out, else it forms aballoon of air above therose. Don shears off abouthalf the volume of glass,melts the bottom and shapesit, picks up the four leavesand pulls them with an icepick, trying to avoid airbubbles, then pulls each leafinto a point by inserting the

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Three experienced paperweight collectors: Ken Brown, JohnZecca, Clarence Brunner, April 16, 2005.

Guest Artist Don Friel, large Don Friel weight held by new ownerJill Bauersfeld, April 16, 2005.

ice pick into the clear glass infront of the leaf, then pulling,a trick he learned from RayBanford who had, in turn,learned it himself from old-timers. (Don said that earlyon glassworkers wouldn’tshare their skills and secretsso he learned over theirshoulders. Laterglassworkers shared morewillingly.) The four leaveswere then pulled together inthe center below the rose.(Question: How manyweights does he make in aday? Three to four. How didhe learn to make them? Bywatching, then trial and error.Don notes that no one wants to learn from him, thoughhe doesn’t hide his process. He says new glass artistsaren’t taught to make paperweights in art school butmay turn to weights when out of school in order to paythe bills!)

Don then shapes the weight with encased glass. Hesays there are steps he could eliminate but that wouldlower the quality of the product. About 60 to 70minutes into the process, he attaches the foot andshapes it. At this time the punty rod is at the top of theweight. Don attaches a second punty to the bottom ofthe foot and breaks the weight off the top punty, inorder to shape the top of the weight. His techniqueeliminates grinding the top, a job that takes a half hour.

He also spends a good dealof time removing impuritiesfrom the top of the weight.Then he inspects the piece,fire polishes it (so hisweights look like they’venever been on a punty rod)and places it into theannealing oven for 18 hours.When it comes out of theannealing oven, if he likes ithe signs it; if not, hedestroys it.

At 2:50 PM Don Frielconcluded to enthusiasticapplause. Stan thanked himfor a wonderful presentationand offered him a DVPCA

T-shirt as a memento of this happy occasion. Stanreminded everyone again about our 13th AnniversaryCelebration Weekend on July 16 & 17, 2005 and aboutDVPCA’s agreement to partner with Wheaton Villageto promote a Paperweight Event there in May 2006. At2:55 PM, the meeting ended formally but there wasmuch interaction with Don Friel and Guest DealersDan and Therese McNamara before the room emptiedalmost an hour later.

Respectfully submitted, Sue Sutton, Secretary

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Guest Artist Don Friel, Joe Freeze (bald head) Andrew V. Scott,April 16, 2005.

Diane Atkerson, Betsy Nitshe, Kay Reid (Betsy’s mother), April 16, 2005.

1968 Baccarat Double Overlay Sulphide, with spiral cutting, ofWill Rogers (1879-1935), cameo modeled by Albert David,

Limited Edition of 389. 3 1/8" diameter, 2" tall.

floor of the Radisson. By the way, the hotel hadbeen built by members of the Bergstrom family, aprolific, even ubiquitous clan, in 1982 as a hoteland conference center but had been under theRadisson banner for at least five years. InConkey’s bookstore at 218 East College, we laterlearned that there were about two dozenBergstrom car dealerships in the Fox Cities ofAppleton, Neenah and Menasha, though JohnNelson’s fortune stemmed from his involvementwith the Kimberly-Clark paper company.

Convention began promptly at 9 AM on Thursday,May 19, with PCA President Gaskill and a 10minute slide show. Afterwards Bill noted that aConvention is a tremendous amount of work andthanked Al Bates and the previous PCAadministration for their efforts, since the year2000, in selecting and planning for this site. Henoted that this was the PCA’s (and his) secondvisit to Neenah, the first in both cases was 1989,and that the major difference between the twovisits was the economic reality of the Internet.Ninety percent of the books of value to collectorshave been printed since 1989 so that informationabout collectibles, through books and/or anInternet search, is more available than ever before.PCA’s annual full-color Bulletin is the crownjewel of the organization, a long term contributionto our knowledge of the hobby, and is nowincluded in the fee formembership. Bill listed afew basic economicrealities: There are roughly3400 weights on theInternet auction site eBayevery day listed under“Paperweights” (and manymore not so listed);traditional venues forbuying and selling havechanged drastically so wemust appreciate ourcollectors, our artists andour dealers; and allcollecting groups areimploding, losingmembership and artsfunding. The mostpowerful collecting group

in America, including over a third of the membersof Congress, is the American NumismaticAssociation, the ANA, with over 30,000 members,and it could not prevent the SmithsonianInstitution from removing from display its entirecoin collection. So we of the PCA, Inc. should beextremely grateful to the Bergstrom-MahlerMuseum for keeping its unique paperweightcollection on public display. Finally, the mostimportant aspect of our tiny collecting niche isfriendship, the relationships we develop with othercollectors, artists and dealers, both near and now,through the Internet, far away.

Bill spent the rest of his hour on logistics, showingmaps of the hotel and its Conference Center,introducing PCA’s Board Members and describingtheir multiple duties, reviewing the remaining threeday Convention schedule and announcing that hewas 95% certain that the 2007 Convention would bein Toledo, Ohio. One schedule innovation Billmentioned was “Box Lunch and Learn” sessionswith the artists, five (Drew Ebelhare, Bob Banford,Peter McDougall, Gordon Smith and JenniferWilson) on Thursday and five more on Friday, eachone hour session repeated between 12:30 and 2:30PM (which arrangement was later viewed as a greatsuccess). Another was the distribution of doorprizes directly from the PCA Hospitality Suite orfrom dealers’ booths rather than at the Closing

Banquet, at which therewould be no formalprogram.

What a dynamic,enthusiastic, focused andhumorous speaker BillGaskill is. PCA, Inc. isfortunate to have him as itsadvocate at this criticaltime.

Next on the program wasAlex Vance, ExecutiveDirector of theB e r g s t r o m - M a h l e rMuseum, who reports tothe Museum’s Board ofDirectors, led byChairman Ken Melchert,

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(Continued from page 3)

Super magnum 1973 Saint Louis piedouche, presented to PaulJokelson at the 1973 Chicago PCA Convention, donated to the

Bergstrom-Mahler Museum by Mr. Jokelson in 1974. 9-13/16” dia.,9 1/2” tall, with 607 multi-colored millefiori canes, signed, numbered

and dated. Museum accession number: PW 74.166.1065.

and who has been with the Museum sinceDecember 1, 1978. Alex said he would talk aboutthree aspects of the Bergstrom-Mahler, theoriginal bequest by Mrs. Bergstrom, the additionsto the collection since the original bequest andthen the two together. (Here, Mr. Melchert spokebriefly, declaring that the Museum’s paperweightcollection is its most significant resource and itsfirst priority; the Museum wants it and thepaperweight collecting community to expand andgrow.)

After introducing various Museum Boardmembers and staff, Mr. Vance recounted theMuseum’s history: It began with incorporation in1954 as the John Nelson Bergstrom Museum andArt Center and opened its doors in 1959. TheBergstroms had no children and their decision tobequeath their lavish home and their remarkablepaperweight collection to the City of Neenah,even now a city of only 27, 000, led to anenormous amount of justifiable pride in a numberof local civic leaders who worked mightily toestablish the Museum on a firm footing. From thebeginning there were two parts to the Museum, anart center and a museum, the difference being thatan art center usually has no permanent collectionwhereas a museum does. Art centers put onexhibitions and educational programs; they don’tdivide their resources. Museums, on the otherhand, have collections, which they care for,exhibit and work to make them grow.

Mr. Vance proposed the rule of “inverseproportional appreciation”, which he proves everytime he travels, to New England, Texas orwherever. This rule translates into “Theappreciation for our collection increases the fatheraway you get from the collection!” (Laughter!)“In fact, when you first enter the Museum,appreciation often declines and when you are inthe Museum proper, sometimes hatred for thecollection breaks out!” (Again, laughter!)

Since the Museum has a policy of free admissionto everyone, how does it get the funds to operate?A valuable part of the original Bergstrom bequestin 1958 was an endowment of $555,000 whichthen generated $27,500 annually for operatingexpenses. By 1978 the endowment had grown

only to $890,000 because it was necessary tocompletely remodel the Bergstrom home and thenadd an extensive addition in 1965. Mr. Vancecame on board in 1978 and by 2000 theendowment had grown to over $9 Million, but theglobal economic downturn since has reduced theendowment to $7.5 Million currently. TheMuseum’s second major source of income is itsMuseum Shop which produces an annual netincome of over $100,000. Other income derivesfrom general contributions, memberships, fundsfrom the City of Neenah, income from the annualArts festival, etc., leading to the conclusion thatthe Museum is financially healthy. This isimportant because recent times have seendeclining memberships in many arts organizationsand many can now envision a scenario in whichtheir institutions cease to exist. However, there isno combination of foreseeable circumstances thatcould cause the Museum’s demise.

The Bergstrom-Mahler is incorporated as a501.C.3 non-profit organization with education asits major mission. Since 1959 these have been nomore than four employees, and sometimes onlytwo. Last year George Kulles appraised thepaperweight collection. Of the 632 objects in theoriginal Evangeline Bergstrom bequest, the top 58pieces had a total value of about $1.3 Million andan average value of over $22,000. In comparison,the top 33 pieces of those donated since theoriginal 1958 bequest had a total value of close totwo-thirds of a million dollars and an averagevalue of almost $20,000. The top weight in theoriginal bequest was a Pantin lizard valued at[conservatively, I would say] $120,000; the top ofthe later items was a Saint Louis upright bouquet at$85,000. So it appears that the Museum hasmaintained the standard of paperweight excellenceestablished by the Bergstrom bequest, but noteverything in the collection is world class. Inconclusion, the Bergstrom-Mahler is a fullyfunctioning and accredited Museum with anoperating budget of around $800,000, four full-time staff members and a world-renownedcollection. The Museum is free admission withbetween 22,000 and 30,000 visitors a year. Theaxiom in the museum field is that if you get 10% ofyour area population as visitors, you’re doing fine;the Bergstrom-Mahler far exceeds that limited

10

percentage. Mr. Vance ended by passing out theMuseum’s last Annual Report, for July 1, 2003 –June 30, 2004, which presented a snapshot of theMuseum’s recent activities.

Next on the program, at 10:45 AM, was JamiSeverstad, Curator of the Bergstrom-MahlerMuseum. A slim, young, attractive brunette, Jamihad been described by Alex Vance as “the futureof the Bergstrom-Mahler”. During her 35 minuteaddress, Jami made a number of interesting pointsabout the Museum. She recognized, first off, that“We are in the middle of nowhere” and are nottaking the greatest advantage of the Museum’sincredible holdings. Much more public relationseffort was called for; to that end, the Museum hasresurrected its newsletter. Museum staff membershave made substantial technical improvements indata collecting and inventory listing, and there isnow a touch screen monitor on which one canidentify every inventory item. Use of theMuseum’s holdings by various collectors andscholars has been expanded as has thecommunication between the Museum and theseinterested parties. Generally, Museum inventoryis not sold off, as is sometimes the rumor incollecting circles, but the Museum may de-accession duplicate items in order to establish orenhance an endowment for the acquisition of newitems. As part of its art center mission, theMuseum organizes and/or displays many mini-exhibits of weights during the year; either tied into a traveling exhibit fromanother institution or thatreflect some timely themethat normally would not beon display. The Museumoften loans outpaperweights and displaymaterials to othermuseums and institutionsand has taken Museumholdings to local PCAgroups (EvangelineBergstrom PCA in OshKosh, WI and NewEngland PCA) for thosegroups’ inspection andenjoyment. The Museumis striving to expand its

educational component and recently began aninternship program with Lawrence University(Jami’s own Alma Mater). Finally, the Museumrecognizes that we, the PCA, are its learnedconstituency and will do all that is necessary tofacilitate our use and enjoyment of the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum.

Between 12 Noon and 2 PM, five paperweightartists made presentations during “Box Lunch andLearn” sessions in five different, much smallermeeting rooms, but Toby and I elected, instead, toattend a meeting of the regional PCA presidentsorganized by Jayne Gilbert of the Texas PCA.Later, we heard many positive comments aboutthese sessions with the artists, except that the fivebreak-out rooms were too small for the crowdsthat wanted to attend.

At 2 PM, we were back in the Main BallroomSeminar for Jerry Gard speaking on “What Makesa Paperweight Special?” Jerry’s first weight,given to him by his wife, Elizabeth, on October25, 1973 was a Perthshire closepack. Although hehas collected paperweights for some 32 years andis an acknowledged expert, having sat on thePCA’s ID Clinic for nine straight Conventions, heis not certain that his experience can guide otherson how to buy and collect paperweights. Still, hehoped that displaying some of the weights in hiscollection, and explaining why they were specialto him would be of benefit to this audience.

During his talk, Jerryshowed some 50 weightsfrom his extensivecollection, but this reviewcan cover only a very few.The first is a rathernondescript New EnglandGlass Company openconcentric on poorlyformed latticinio with acentral “1825” date cane.After much research ofthe literature and even avisit to Neenah to holdand photograph one of thebest known examples ofthe “1825” cane, Jerry

11

Perthshire Paperweights PP12, signed/dated 1972, de-accessioned May 19, 2005 and won by the author.

finally proved that it is simply the other end of acane that says “1852”, placed in the weight upsidedown and we are reading the wrong end of it! Youcan experience this for yourself. Write “1825” ona sheet of paper and read it backwards by holdingit up to the light. You will have to turn it upsidedown, but when you do, it will read “1825”! Sothis weight has a special place in Jerry’s collectionand this study greatly increased his interest inAmerican weights.

This interest led to a number of special NEGCweights entering Jerry’s collection: a posy on acranberry-filled latticinio dated 1852, anotherposy on a smoky aqua ground, a star garland on afine upset muslin (only 15 NEGC weights areknown on upset muslin), a garland of flowersaround a central cane showing a definite St. Louisheritage (this from the Fisher collection), a rare,possibly unique pom-pom combined withmillefiori, a two rose bouquet with bud and adouble overlay upright bouquet about which PaulHollister wrote :An extraordinary blending ofskills within a unified concept” and “One of thegreat paperweights.” It is more difficult to findspecial Boston & Sandwich weights, they repeatedso many flowers on clear or ordinary jaspergrounds, but the striped-petaled poinsettia with acentral “B” cane, no doubt a presentation pieceand one of only three known, certainly qualifies.In the category of more modern Americanweights, a wonderful Millville crimped water lily,from the New YorkHistorical Societycollection, was describedby Hollister in hisEncyclopedia as“spectacular”, “the greatwaterlily, one of theboldest and most powerfulpresentations under glass.”

Jerry continued with anumber of modern piecesby Stankard, DanielSalazar, Grubb, VictorTrabucco, Stump andSteve Lundberg, a veryfew antique Europeanweights, Baccarat and

Clichy, and ended with his magnificent MountWashington rose which was the cover weight onthe Sotheby’s catalog when it first reached themarket in June, 1988, setting a record for MountWashington weights, and was also the numberOne weight in Larry Selman’s traveling museumcollection which went as far as Scotland to beexhibited [and which Toby and I saw at the JonesMuseum of Glass & Ceramics in Sebago, Maine inAugust 1994]. Finally, Jerry hoped that all of ushave as much joy from forming our collections ashe did and that we are lucky enough to acquiremany “special” weights along the way.

George N. Kulles, author of three IdentifyingAntique Paperweights books, Millefiori (1985),Lampwork (1987) and The Less Familiar (2002)as well as the novel The Curse of the ImperialPaperweight (1995) is surely one of the mostknowledgeable and adept speakers on paperweightmatters known to man! His talk, from 3:35 to 4:25PM, entitled “Made in France, Of Course”, was ascholarly rebuttal to the premise enunciated byEuropean glass historian and scientist SibylleJargstorf at the 2001 PCA Convention in Corning,New York, that the classic era French factories didnot make their own millefiori canes but boughtthem from other sources. Jargstorf repeated herpremise in the 2003 PCA Bulletin, in an articleentitled “ The Maltsov Vases: A Missing Link inthe History of Millefiori Revival in the 19thCentury”, to wit, “in the middle third of the 19th

century, the maker of themillefiori canes was notnecessarily or even hardlyever the maker ofpaperweights.”

George began, as usual,with the audience on itsfeet, at his directionimitating his side to sidewaddle, hand gestureindicating the mouthing ofwords, mime of lookingthrough binoculars andgesture of resignation,after which Georgepronounced hisconclusory argument: “If

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Base of PP12 with Museum accession number86.038.1565DEA. DEA means de-accessioned.

it walks like a duck, talks like a duck and lookslike a duck…it’s a duck!” After almost forty yearsstudying paperweights and 19th century millefioricanes, George disagrees with Jargstorf’s theory.He planned to talk about the basis for her concept,the difficulties of transport during the mid-1800s,the quality and compatibility of glasses then, thefluorescence and density of glass and, finally,millefiori molds. George believes that Jargstorfmay have been influenced by themisrepresentation of a Baccarat vase appearing onthe cover of the 1990 PCA Bulletin, where it wasincorrectly identified as Bohemian. This vase wasuncovered by Dwight Lanmon, then Curator at theCorning Museum of Glass, in a museum inPetrograd. When he asked, Lanmon was told itwas purchased in 1986 in Leningrad from a staterun antique shop and the museum knew nothingabout provenance because sales in Russian antiqueshops at that time were transacted anonymously.But museum staff did say they thought it might beBohemian.

The claim by Jargstorf isthat the vase was created inRussia but with importedBohemian canes. Sheavers that Russia, as wellas Baccarat, Saint Louis,Islington and others didnot produce their ownmillefiori canes but insteadimported them fromBohemia and Silesia; andthat is the crux of hertheory. Here Georgeproduced a painting madein Prague in 1843 thatshowed the type of horse-drawn wagon used fortransporting goods andheavy materials throughoutthe continent of Europe inthose days. During thesummer months, thesewagons were able to travelthree miles an hour, theirtop speed, or 25 miles aday, and that was duringthe few months of summer

when they didn’t have to battle roads made muddyby spring and fall rains. In winter, travelconditions were much worse; imagine the trek toRussia from Prague over the mountains andthrough ice and snow. How far is it to Russia,Baccarat, Saint Louis and Islington fromBohemia? Today, you would fly 1100 miles toLeningrad, 1200 miles to Moscow, 850 miles toBirmingham, England and about 550 miles toParis. But if you traveled by car, the distanceswould be even greater because roads don’t go instraight lines. Too, travel conditions and roads onthe Continent [and elsewhere] in the mid-1800swere not like they are today. It might take threemonths for one of these wagons to get to Moscowin the 1840s and similarly lengthy periods of timeto arrive at the other glass making centersmentioned.

A twin of the vase pictured on the 1990 Bulletinwas discovered, subsequently, in Berlin and some

unknown source recentlygave the two the name“Maltsov vases”“Maltsov” is the name ofa Russian glass factory,one of at least 15operating at this time,making high qualitygoods, but there is nobasis for naming the twovases “Maltsov”, andGeorge urges that thisappellation be droppedimmediately and that thevases be known, simply,as Baccarat vases!Furthermore, it isunderstandable that thesetwo antique Baccaratvases ended up in Berlinand in Russia. In the 19thcentury, the greatestexport destination forBaccarat products wasRussia; the Russian upperclasses worshipped allthings French and spokeFrench, the language ofdiplomacy and of culture

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The “Maltsov” Vase on the cover of PCA, Inc.’s 1990 Bulletin.

then, in the Russian Court. And if one of thesetwo vases stopped on its way to Russia in Berlin,that is understandable, too, for similar reasons.

Next, George discussed the similarity of the vase’sshape to that of some Russian pottery, whichsimilarity may have influenced Jargstorg, butnoting that this same shape appears in Chineseforms, known as “gu” and in the ceramic andbronze crafts of other countries as well. He thenexamined the particular millefiori canes studiedby Jargstorf, fortress, trefoil, quatrefoil,honeycomb, etc., that led to her conclusions. Hisconclusion differs from hers because when hefinds Baccarat canes in the two vases, as she does,it is because the vases were made by Baccarat, notsomewhere else with imported Baccarat canes!So, then, if the far-flung glass factory centersmentioned above did not produce their ownmillefiori canes, who did? At first Jargstorfsuggests Italian sources of the period, Franchini,Bigaglia and Buccolin, all of whom George rejectsfor various reasons [Buccolin died in 1842], thenBohemian sources. Eventually, the issue of caneorigin comes down to a question about the poorcutting on the two vases, in that the cutting is sopoor it could not possibly be the work of Baccarator of Bohemian factories. George notes thatBaccarat canes are often complex and theirelements are close together. On the other hand,the elements in Bohemian canes usually sit farapart and contain more open spaces. Georgepointed out the differencesbetween Bohemian starcanes and Baccarat starcanes, Bohemian arrowcanes and Baccarat arrowcanes, Bohemian andBaccarat dog silhouettecanes, etc. He also notedthat at the time of theirmanufacture, Bohemianglass was considered to beof lower quality thanFrench glass, perhapsbecause of the crushedsilica they used as the sandcomponent.

Studies of glass

compatibility, differences in glasses revealed byfluorescence testing and density testing andchemical composition of glasses are valuable aidsin determining origin. At the great paperweightshow, Corning, 1978, “Flowers which clothe theMeadows”, almost all 360 weights were tested fordensity, that is, how much heavier than water theywere. Baccarat weights tested at 3 1/3 timesheavier, Bohemian weights, at 2 1/2 times heavierthan water. That is a substantial difference.

Finally, how much room would that supposedBohemian/Silesian factory need to put all thosehundreds and hundreds of molds, for all the canesused by all the receiving glass factories, on thefloor? And what sort of furnace would they need?It would require hundreds of glass pots withdifferent glass compositions and colors just forone of the receiving factories, and all without acomputer to keep track of this inventory! If wehad just one of the antique Baccarat molds, wewould know that Baccarat made their own canes,but they are gone, presumably melted down duringWorld War II for the war effort. In conclusion,George has tried to prove that the glass companiesin England, France and Russia created themillefiori found in their respective paperweights;in addition, he stated categorically that the twovases, one in Berlin, the other in Saint Petersburgwere made in France!

Thus ended the first full day of seminars at thisyear’s PCA Convention,but not our involvementwith paperweights, for weall were invited to aReception at theB e r g s t r o m - M a h l e rMuseum beginning at5:30 PM. Starting at 5:15PM, the first of four largecomplimentary shuttlebuses left the Radisson forthe Museum, the othersfollowing quickly as theyfilled up and they wouldrun all evening betweenthe two sites until 10 PM.At the Reception, asadvertised, we found the

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Chinese Plaque Weight, circa 1930.

usual cheese and veggie trays, wines and beer, andalso more substantial and tasty catered horsd’oeuvres and desserts. In addition, there weremore than 20 paperweights up for Silent Auction,mostly de-accessions by the Museum, threespecial paperweight exhibits already described,lampwork demonstrations in the new downstairsGlass Studio, the Gift Shop managed by KathySmits was open late hours, and we could againview the entire 2200+ item paperweightcollection. Toby and I happily spent another 3.5hours in the Bergstrom-Mahler, examining manyof the galleries we had skimmed over the daybefore, eating our fill in lieu of dinner, and I wonat Silent Auction a 1972 Perthshire PP12,described by Mahoney and McClanahan as “alarge limited edition spaced millefiori weight,with translucent blue ground under white lace andwith a date/signature cane in the setup”. As anunexpected bonus, on closer examination with a10x magnifier, I found two silhouette canes amongthe spaced millefiori, but the most importantfeature, for me, is the Bergstrom-Mahler Museumaccession number, 86.038.1565, printed andwritten on the base, along with the Perthshirepaper label. Obviously a Perthshire Paperweightis not from the original Evangeline Bergstrombequest but still is a nice keepsake and mementoof this Convention.

We were back at the Radisson by 9:30 PM andhastened to the Dealer Fair which had re-opened at9 (not at 7 PM as originallyscheduled). There we metup with Marek andAgnieszka Kordasiewicz,our guides from the PCC(Paperweight CollectorsCircle of the UK) tour ofBohemia in September,2004. I collected fromDrew Ebelhare the strikingred ground weight he hadproduced in a limitededition of 25commemorating the 250thanniversary of theestablishment of Carlsthal,a Bohemian glass factoryno longer in operation and

now known as Orle, the dedication ceremony forwhich Toby and I attended on Saturday,September 11, 2004 in the Polish mountains nearthe Iser River. Also, I had won, and collectedfrom the McNamaras as a door prize, the“Plymouth Rock.1620” weight made by theProvidence Inkstand Company to celebrate ourCentennial year in 1876. As we toured the dealersI handed out to them the remaining “Save theDate” cards promoting Paperweight Fest 2006 atWheaton Village next May (as Gay Taylor haddone the night before with another group ofdealers). At the same time I sounded out thedealers about whether they would set up at theFest, and received positive responses from at leastnine of them. It had been another long, activity-packed day so we were back in our room by 10:30again that night.

Across from the College Street entrance to thelow-rise Radisson, atop a group of stores, was alarge flashing sign advertising local attractionsand intermittently showing the time andtemperature. Each morning, I found my way tothe front of the hotel to view that sign. DuringConvention Week, early morning temps inAppleton were in the mid-50s, highs during theday were from 69-76, a bit warmer thananticipated. Believe it or not, it was warmer thatweek in far north Wisconsin than it was inPhiladelphia, we learned on our return home.Anyway, at 7:50 AM on Friday, May 20, Toby and

I were at the 10-personbreakfast table we hadreserved previously forour 8 AM DVPCAorganizational meetingaround Paperweight Fest2006. In addition to us,attending were AndyDohan, Jim Lefever, BillPrice, Nancy Alfano,Brian and SuzanneLandis, Gay Taylor andPat Ackerman. We chasedthe subject for an hour.Andy had a three page listof suggested topics for theevent, with the conditionthat any topic not utilized

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One of a kind Maxwell desk weight, with name, occupation andpertinent graphic.

would revert to his benefit. I handed out fourassignments, claiming that my hands would be fullsimply overseeing the efforts of all the volunteers(but knowing that the entire project would demanda great deal of effort from all concerned, includingmyself). At 9 AM, we were through and wanderedin the direction of the General Seminar room. Butfirst, in the PCA Hospitality Suite, Toby and I hadour pictures taken by Rosann Milius with ourfaces in the cut-out of the blown-up antique SaintLouis weight she and her PCA had constructed.And they’re not bad photos!

From 9:30 – 11 AM, the Convention schedulelisted Gary McClanahan and William Gaskill onthe topic “Collections within a Collection”. Theyspoke alternately but often commentedhumorously during the other’s presentation.William started off, enumerating the elevencollection areas to be discussed: Rose is a rose isa rose; Mercury glass weights; Chinese weights;Railroad paperweights; Chequer weights;Remembrance paperweights: Wedding; Soddensnow weights; Remembrance paperweights:Memorial; Bohemian inclusions; Blown fruitweights; and American critter weights. Acollector’s personal taste forms the collection; ifyou like a particular form or style, you are likelyto end up with many of that type. And you willfind that if one of that type looks good, two lookbetter and a collection of them together looks everbetter. That doesn’t mean that you must collect400 English green bottleglass dump weights asBill has done, but…Remember, collecting is acompetitive sport and ifyou do not acquire that onegreat piece now, it will endup in someone else’strophy case!

Gary, to begin hisdiscussion of rose weights,set the ground rules: Whathe has is “the good stuff”!What Bill (or someoneelse) has is “junk”! WhenGary sells you something,he is selling you “the good

stuff”; when he buys it back from you, he isbuying your “junk”! With that understood, Garynoted that probably no other flower is as wellloved or as esteemed around the world as is therose. The earliest paperweights in the classicperiod were rich in millefiori representations ofroses, Clichy being the most prolific producer ofthe rose cane and even lending its name to the“Clichy rose”. [I, myself, have a small collectionof crimp rose weights, a completely different formfrom that being discussed here.]

Next, Bill: Mercury glass weights have a coatingof silver-coloring on the inside of a hollow spacewhich gives the appearance of silver. It is calledmercury glass because in the early days theinternal coating was mercury which provedunsuitable long term. Silver nitrate was also used.The hole on the bottom of the piece allowedaccess for pouring in the silver coating and wassealed with either a metal or glass disk to keep thesilvered surface from tarnishing. This waspatented in England in 1849 and in the US in1855. The best English pieces are marked E.Varnish & Co.; the American pieces are often notmarked but may have the New England GlassCompany mark.

Gary, again: We are most familiar with Chineseweights of the 1920s and 1930s, which, while notantiques yet, are eminently collectible in their ownright. Paperweights, aquarium decorations and

buttons were sold atWoolworth’s, Kresge’sand other five and dimestores of that era; theywere also featured at theChicago and New YorkWorld’s Fairs in the1930s.

Bill: Railroad weightswere created to celebrate apromotion or retirementor mark a serviceanniversary. They usuallycontain the initials of therailroad line where theintended owner workedand often a title or job

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Railroad Paperweight, a Sweetheart’s Gift to John G. Doyle

description, the meaning of which may be lost.Cross-collectible with the 7000 Railroadianacollectors in the U.S., specific railroad line namesin these weights may catapult prices into thestratosphere!

Gary: Chequers consist of orderly arrangements ofcanes separated by filigree cables. In the classicera, Clichy achieved the artistic zenith of this formModern makers include Baccarat, Perthshire,Peter McDougall and Parabelle Glass.

Bill: Remembrance weights, both American andEuropean, were created to celebrate a wedding orthe anniversary of a wedding and often reflect theliteracy levels of the makers with reversed letters,misspellings and creative use of abbreviations.Typical wedding weights are text-based, symbol-based and photography-based.

Gary: According to Paul Hollister, in a soddensnow weight, “the canes are sunk into what firstappears a solid ground of a peculiar opaque butfuzzy white-like dense fog… Closer inspectionshows it not to be a ground at all but an arrangementof thick rings…like cotton wadding…” Soddensnow weights show a surprising richness in bothantique and modern pieces.

Bill: Some Remembrance weights were memorialsto a loved one who had passed on. They followand reflect Victorian sensibilities about death andremembrance, are almostalways folk genres, and,like wedding pieces, aretext-, symbol- andphotography-based.

Gary: Bohemianinclusions, which is ageneric term, contain avariety of ceramic-likeobjects and are oftendecorated internally withcolored glass. They werequite stylized and oftenfaceted to increase theirvisual appeal. Animalsand children are commonsubject matter. In the

largely Roman Catholic Bohemia, religioussubject matter is also often found.

Bill: The best Blown fruit weights are amazinglylifelike but rare; supposedly Saint Louis made thebest examples of this genre. In America, the NewEngland Glass Company made blown fruitweights early in its history and produced aremarkable range, often placing them on a round“cookie”, while SL pieces were on a square“cookie” base.

Gary: American Critter weights: These containceramic figurines and are made primarily in themid-West. Many are from West Virginia glassfamilies, making them difficult to identify as towhich family member was the author, unless theyare bottom stamped. Somewhat “naïve” in style,these have a loyal following and prices that maysurprise you.

Absent pertinent color images, the by-play betweenthe speakers and the continuous laughter generatedby Gary McClanahan and Bill Gaskill, thisrecounting of eleven possible “Collections within aCollection” appears dry, almost sterile, an impressionas far from reality as can be imagined. In actuality,this 90 minute presentation by Gary and Bill was themost visual, entertaining and informative of the entireConvention.

Scheduled from 11:15 AM – 12:30 PM was AnneAnderson, a long-timepaperweight collectorfrom the United Kingdom,speaking about Mrs.A p p l e w h a i t e - A b b o t t(hereafter Mrs. A-A), anearlier English weightcollector. But, alas,disaster struck. Someonehad inadvertently turnedupside down the carouselof slides accompanyingher talk, leaving a pile ofslides, out of anysequence, of course, soAnne valiantly proceededwithout pictures. Not thatit mattered where Mrs. A-

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Clichy moss ground, 3 1/16” dia., acquired by Mrs. Bergstromin 1937. PW 58.095.0095.

A was concerned because as far as Anne knew,there was no picture of the woman anywhere!Living in London, in the early years of the 20thcentury (1917-1931), Mrs. A-A acquired afabulous paperweight collection when little wasdocumented about weights. In addition to owningmany “blockbuster” paperweights, she also hadthe most important collection ever ofpaperweight-related objects. Mrs. A-A died in1938 at age 77. It was preparing for the auction ofher collection in six parts in 1952-1953 thatprompted Timothy H. Clark, an auctioneer hiredby Sotheby’s London after World War II, to realizethat paperweights were important on their own asan art form and to formulate the first glossary ofterms necessary to describe weights consistentlyand accurately in auction catalogs.

The auction of Mrs. A-A’s paperweight collection in1952-53 was a turning point. At the time, it was thelargest weight collection to come to auction andreceived enormous publicity, via the London Times,increasing public awareness about, and appreciationof, paperweights as an art form. But like most of us,Mrs. A-A did not know at the beginning what she wascollecting. Her early ledger list of acquisitionssimply stated “pink swirl” or “black and white” todescribe an item. In time she met the dealers and thedealers helped in her education, so that later weightdescriptions in her ledger are more detailed anddescriptive. Prices at English weight auctions in the1920s and 1930s were so low that they didn’t seemworth the effort but by 1928Mrs. A-A owned 250 antiquesulphides, just one“collection within acollection”. By the time shedied, she had 450 weights inher extensive collection ofalmost 2000 items.

Although personalinformation about Mrs. A-Ais not easily come by,despite her apparentlyheroic efforts to uncoverremnants of theApplewhaite family andtheir homestead, AnneAnderson kept us

entertained until 12:25 PM, just in time for the day’sBox Lunch and Learn sessions. Again, Toby and Ielected to attend the local PCA Presidents luncheonin the Hickory Room, near hotel registration andcashier desks. However, we were there only until1:20 PM, when we left for another appointment.

Back in the General Seminar Room at 2:30 PM,Jami Severstad, Curator of the Bergstrom-Mahler,was on the printed schedule for the topic “YourCollection to a Museum?” Jami first noted that allmuseums follow a set of standard rules andpractices and she intended to explain thoseMuseum procedures that we collectors could usefor our own collections. She explained theMuseum’s numbering system and showed howaccession numbers are marked on the Museum’sweights. Even for small collections, it isimportant to have an accurate inventory list aswell as an up-to-date appraisal with pictures of theindividual items. And the collection must beinsured for its correct value. The Bergstrom-Mahler uses a museum inventory system known asPastPerfect, which could be adapted for use withlarger collections not in museums. [By the way,there are currently two examples of the PlymouthRock weight I won from the McNamaras in theBergstrom-Mahler collection!]

Jami noted that Mrs. Bergstrom used two sets ofindex cards as her inventory control method andthat all records of the Evan Pancake weight

collection were left to theMuseum. At some point,she suggested, a collectormight question whetherhe/she has too manyweights, thereby bringingup the issue of de-accession. There areseveral ways to dispose ofa collection. One way tode-accession is to donatethe collection to amuseum [preferably theB e r g s t r o m - M a h l e rMuseum, of course].However, if the collectorwishes to donate orbequeath a collection to a

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Ebelhare open concentric commemorating 250 years of theCarlsthal (now Orle) Glassworks in Bohemia.

museum, she urged that the donation beunrestricted. She told the story of a collector whowanted to leave his weights to the Museum alongwith an elaborate dollhouse, but with the conditionthat the dollhouse must remain in the Museum inperpetuity. The Museum accepted the collectionbut is now, in effect, stuck with an elaborate item,the dollhouse, that simply doesn’t fit in with theMuseum’s holdings. There are, too, tax benefitsderived from a gift to a museum and those must beexamined carefully to avoid any extra payments tothe IRS. After a brief Question and Answerperiod, Jami ended her presentation at 3:35 PM.

William C. Price, Jr., Esq., the 4 PM speaker,supplied a bit of humor by miming how coal andnatural gas were discovered and mined amongstthe hills and valleys of Pittsburgh in the 19thCentury, three volunteers representing theMonongahela, Alleghany and Ohio Rivers, andBill Gaskill representing Mount Washington onthe Southside of the city. This show produced anextended round of applause! And with all therivers for transport and natural gas and coallocally available, Pittsburgh was a glass makingcenter for most of the 19th Century. At one point,there were at least two dozen glass factorieswithin a very narrow space of 2/10ths of a mile.

Bill’s topic, William H. Maxwell and his ‘Eureka’Paperweights, dealt with Maxwell’s September 5,1882 patent for printing a name, monogram,photograph or design on athin plate of white glassand then encasing thatimage in a paperweight.Weights signed “WilliamH. Maxwell” areuncommon because twicein 3.5 years his glassfactories were lost todestructive fires, in June1879 and January 1883,after being in operationonly very short times.Bill’s interest in thissubject derives from hislife-long proximity toRochester, PA, whereMaxwell lived and worked.

He roughly divides Maxwell’s output into threedifferent groups: portrait paperweights, describedin Bill’s article in the 2000 Bulletin; advertisingpaperweights, described in the 2002 Bulletin; andone-of-a-kind weights made for certainindividuals’ desks. The latter were completelyhand decorated and typically contained the nameof the intended owner and often his occupation orplace of employment. Bill illustrated hishumorous discourse with a number of theseunique personalized weights and ended at 4:40PM to enthusiastic applause.

Have you ever tried to photograph a pinchbeskweight? Marshall Deitsch, from 4:45 – 5:15 PM,expounded on this unusual paperweight form,named after Christopher Pinchbeck (1670-1732),a London watch and musical clock maker, whoinvented, in the early 1700s, an alloy composed of83% copper and 17% zinc, calling it “PinchbeckMetal”. This alloy looked exactly like gold butcost far less and was a sensation in the jewelryworld of the time. Unfortunately, someunscrupulous jewelers passed off this alloy as realgold and soon after Pinchbeck’s death his namecame to mean a cheap imitation or a counterfeitcopy of something much better. A hundred yearslater, in the early 1840s, skilled craftsmen createdintaglio molds of popular subjects or paintings,over which they pressed a thin foil of Pinchbeck’salloy. These foils were hand tooled to being outthe delicate detail, then installed under a

protective, magnifyingglass dome and supportedby a base of pewter,marble or alabaster thatwas screwed or cementedto the dome. These“ P i n c h b e c kPaperweights” were verypopular in France andEngland during the 1840aand 1850s. Those withmarble or alabaster basesare thought to be Frenchwhile those with metalbases are generallyattributed to England;sometimes the scenedepicted can aid in

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1930s Chinese Imitation of Antique Saint Louis Nosegay, private collection.

attribution. And, to answer the original question,they are extremely difficult to photograph,shooting the foil scene or design though itsmagnifying lens. These rare and desirable piecespre-date the classic era French weights by a fewyears; yet, at prices ranging from $800-$2500 theyare easily within the reach of serious collectors ofFrench antiques. Without apology for the qualityof his photography, Marshall showed a number ofPinchbeck weights and close-ups during hispresentation, to appreciative attention, and endingon schedule.

It was Friday evening, May 20, and time for our“Dutch Treat Dinner”. About 40 of us had signedup for “J” A Restaurant, 501 West Water Street,located in the historic1909 former VulcanHydroelectric Plant on the shores of the Fox River,the only restaurant of four not within walkingdistance of the hotel. Randall Stadtmueller wasour caravan leader and toured us through the PaperDiscovery Center, the Paper Industry InternationalHall of Fame and the very large paper crafts shop,in the building he owned next door, before takingus in to dinner. The confluence of an area of thecountry rich in paper making history and industryand our own passion for paperweights promptedsome amusing comments.

Back at the Radisson by 9:30, we toured theDealer Fair for the third time. By then Toby and Ihad accumulated nine paperweights and knew oftwo more coming, PeterMcDougall minis as favorsat the Closing Banquet, sowe did not anticipate anymore acquisitions. Andthere were none thatevening.

This Convention’s IDClinic panel, scheduledfrom 9 – 10:30 AM onSaturday, May 21,consisted of AnneAnderson, Jerry Gard,Gary McClanahan andPatty Mowatt. Fifty-eightitems, the greatest numberever, had been submitted

for “examination and diagnosis”. As usual, therewas not 100% agreement on a number of pieces,as the panel members alternated the weights uponwhich they would make the consensus comment.One memorable moment occurred when thestumped panel called upon Marek Kordasiewicz,the Bohemian expert, to come forward and expressan opinion on one weight. After long and carefulstudy, Marek said: “I haven’t the faintest idea”,thereby bringing down the house. At theconclusion of the Clinic, there was much excitedperusal of the pieces before they were gathered upfor return to their owners.

From 11-11:40 AM, President Gaskill presidedover the mandated Biennial Meeting of PCA’smembership, a quorum constituting 90 members.After taking a count and confirming that a quorumwas present, Bill advised the membership of aclause in the By-laws requiring that any item ofNew Business must be presented to the Board ofDirectors at least 60 days prior to Convention.There having been no such items presented, therewill be no New Business at this meeting. Minutesof the 2003 Business Meeting were read bySecretary Patty Mowatt. Bill noted that speakersreceived compensation via waived registrationfees and that PCA’s Fiscal Year is now October 1-September 30. Also, the organization is changingfrom a cash flow model to a Profit and Lossmodel. The By-laws were changed to reflect thatthe PCA’s main mission is education and that the

Bulletin is our primaryinstrument for thatmission. Next, Billannounced that the currentslate of officers remains inplace without formalelections because therewere no others nominatedfor the positions. Onechange was wrought whenRegion I Director PatVandersall retired fromthat position and wasreplaced by Tad McKeon,again without formalelections, being the onlynominee for Region IDirector. Other Directors’

20

Signed Peter McDougall mini-concentric receiverd as favor at theClosing Banquet, May 21, 2005

reports followed. Finally, Bill explained whyToledo, Ohio is a good choice for the 2007Convention.

It was time for Lunch on our Own, so…Toby andI drove three miles west to the Fox River AntiqueCenter. There we ran into Anne Anderson andMargaret Preston, who had taxied over. Thoughwe didn’t find any worthwhile weights, we didacquire three pieces of glass and one painting-decorated plate and spent a pleasant two hoursdoing so. Afterwards we stopped at a nearbyMcDonald’s for a snack to tide us over to dinner.

We had missed completely Colin Mahoney’sWorkshop on Ultra Violet Light testing of weightsfrom 2 – 3 PM but were in time to catch the lastformal program, John Hawley’s Workshop onSpecific Gravity, at 3. Density testing can beuseful in suggesting what factory might or mightnot have produced a weight. The density of amaterial is defined as its mass per unit volume andis expressed in metric units of grams per cubiccentimeter (g/cc). Density and specific gravity arenot interchangeable terms. To measure densityone needs a triple beam balance and itsaccompanying attachment weight set, a wire sling,a two quart container and distilled water. Oneweighs the weight in air and then suspended underwater in the sling. Baccarat average density is3.368 g/cc while Saint Louis weights have averagedensity of 3.307 g/cc. Bohemian weights showaverage density of 2.51g/cc because of the lime-potash mix used instead ofthe lead glass preferred bythe French. Finally,density testing is avaluable tool but not anultimate answer topaperweight identification.John will expand on thistalk and on the results ofhis density testing of the23 Gillinder weights thathad been accumulated forthat purpose in an articleon “The Gillinder Project”in the 2006 Bulletin.Watch for it then.

Since John ended early, Toby and I took theopportunity for one last round of the Dealer Fairwhich was to close at 4, rather than as the schedulehad it, at 5 PM. Just at 4 o’clock, we were in frontof Ray Metcalfe of Sweetbriar Gallery and therepurchased our tenth weight. I believe that theglory decade of modern Whitefriars weights wasthe 1970s and the factory outdid itself with thepieces it produced celebrating our Bi-centennial.One of my personal favorites is the “ThreeAmerican Flags” weight. I had owned it oncebefore but sold it off and now Ray had anotherone. Here it is, at home in the Kruger abode!

We retired to our room, to rest and shower beforedinner. At about 6:30, we were in the anteroom tothe downstairs Ballroom for the Cash Bar. Tobydrinks only straight Coke but I indulged in twoquick mixed drinks, enjoying the interaction and,because I had deliberately skipped lunch inanticipation of a big heavy meal, eating more thanmy fill of the butlered hors d’oeuvres. I bumpedinto Andrew Byers of New Zealand and he offeredme greetings from John and Shirley Miles, head ofthe New Zealand PCA. John and I exchange ournewsletters but I haven’t been able to persuadehim, yet, to make the trip over here. It is at leasta 24 hour journey each way and perhaps theexchange rate is not favorable enough between ourtwo dollars, but I will keep trying (as will he, inreverse, no doubt).

Dinner was at 7:30 andthe tables seated ten.Dinner was an enjoyable,often hilarious threehours, almost, with Tobyand me, Harvey and DorisRobinson, Bonnie andGary Geiger, Elliott andRosalyn Heith and Kirkand Glenda Grunder ofBettendorf, Iowa, nowone of the farther reachesof the Delaware ValleyPaperweight CollectorsAssociation! We hope tosee the newlywedGrunders at Wheaton

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Whitefriars “Three American Flags” paperweight, signed/dated1977, acquired by the author May 21, 2005.

Village next May for Paperweight Fest 2006!

There was no formal program at this Banquet, butBill Gaskill was called upon to say a few words. Wasit primarily his vision that produced this mostsatisfying of the four PCA Conventions Toby and Ihave attended, Chicago in 1999, Corning in 2001,San Antonio in 2003 and now Appleton, WI?. Ofcourse, nowhere else in the world can we find anequal to the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum; that elementalone sets this Convention far above the other three.Then, our accommodations at the Radisson PaperValley Hotel and Conference Center were excellentand the food, outstanding, especially the filet mignon

that was my Closing Banquet choice. The quitedecent turnout, about 250, was also a factor, plusthe report from almost all dealers that they had agood show. One more factor adding to ourenjoyment, not related at all to paperweights, is thaton Sunday morning, May 22, on our way to theMilwaukee Airport, we made time to visit thefabulous Milwaukee Art Museum. Ask me to tellyou about it sometime! See you at Wheaton Villagein 2006 and Toledo in ’07! Tell a friend. Better yet,BRING a friend! Wheaton Village, May 2006!Toledo, May 2007! See you there!

22

From Uncovering the Uncommon: The Perthshire LegacyPerthshire Paperweights, Ltd.

From Rick Ayotte's Immersions: The Glass Art of Rick AyotteMarsh Friends, 1999.

Clara and Rick Ayotte Suzanne and Brian Landis

13th Anniversary Celebration WeekendJuly 16 & 17, 2005

Saturday, July 16, 200510 AM: Delaware Valley’s 13th AnniversarySummer Meeting at Williamson Restaurant, 500Blair Mill Road, Horsham, PA, two traffic lightsnorth of PA Turnpike Exit 343 (Old Exit 27), beginswith a Paperweight Fair featuring Paul Dunlop andThe Dunlop Collection, Statesville, North Carolina.

11 AM: Guest Artist Drew Ebelhare returns for ashort review of his most current work. Drew lastappeared before DVPCA at our Fall Meeting onOctober 11, 2003, less than two years ago, and it isastonishing how many new designs and how muchforward movement can be seen in his new weights.NTBM

11:30 AM: “Acquired at Convention” will be adisplay and “show and tell” of all the piecesDVPCAers collected, via various means and fromvarious sources, while attending this year’s PCAConvention in Wisconsin. If you were one of the luckyones at Appleton, please bring in your newly acquiredweights and related objects for this lively session.

2:00 PM: William Drew Gaskill, 56, currentlyPresident of PCA, Inc., has collected weights forover 25 years. He is a Product Line Manager forCisco Systems, Inc. and spends 50% of his time onthe road. He collects American and Englishpaperweights and has gained a reputation forspecialized research in primitive and folk glassweights. Contrary to rumor, he owns a number ofFrench antiques and even some contemporary ones.His extremely large collection supports his researchefforts. Bill also collects numismatic objects thatappear in paperweights and dining car china fromthe Art Deco period. A trained tenor, he participatesin Sacred Harp singings and conventions around thecountry. His topic today is “American Folk ArtPaperweights and Their Audience”.

3:00 PM: “Stump the Dummies” is DelawareValley’s version of an ID Clinic where mysteryweights are brought in for examination anddiagnosis by an ad hoc panel of experts. So please

bring in those mystery weights you haveaccumulated over the past year. You may besurprised at what you have, and even more surprisedif the experts agree on what you have!

4:00 PM: The group will caravan to the lovely Wayne,PA home of Andy and DeeDee Dohan for our annualGarden Party/Catered Cookout. Maps to theirhome and for guidance on Sunday will be available.

Sunday, July 17, 200510:00 AM: Our group will convene at the HeritageGlass Museum, Corner of High and Center Streets,Glassboro, NJ 08028, Phone: 856.881.7468, for aguided tour of the Museum’s holdings, perpetuatingthe heritage of the glass industries of the region,paperweights included. Free Admission.

11-11:45 AM: Our group caravans to WheatonVillage, Millville, NJ, for the second full day of GlassWeekend 2005 with at least three paperweight dealers.Don’t miss the special exhibit in the Museum ofAmerican Glass, “Particle Theories: International Patede Verre and Other Cast Glass Constructions”. Free toFriends of Wheaton Village. Otherwise, there is anadmission charge to the Village.

23

DVPCA 13TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION WEEKENDJULY 16 & 17, 2005Luncheon Reservations July 16thChoices @ $16.00 each:

Boneless Breast of Chicken Maryland, Bacon

Broiled Fresh Scrod, Tartar Sauce

$ Luncheon total

Garden Party/Catered Cookout Reservations July 16th

Number @ $12.00 each

$ Cookout total

Name(s):

Email:

$ Check amount enclosed

Please mail this slip will ALL your selections and check to:

DVPCA, c/o Don Formigli, Treasurer455 Stonybrook Drive, Levittown, PA 19055 NO LATER THAN JULY 2, 2004!!!

For out-of-towners, we suggest either the Willow GroveHampton Inn, 1500 Easton Road, 1/4 mile south ofTurnpike Exit 343, Toll-Free 1-800-426-7866, or theCourtyard by Marriott/Willow Grove, 2350 Easton Road,at the Turnpike Exit, 1-215-830-0550 directly.

2222 4444 PPPPAAAAGGGGEEEE NNNNEEEEWWWWSSSSLLLLEEEETTTTTTTTEEEERRRRISSUE CONTENTS:

• Lead Article: “PCA Convention, May 18-21, 2005:Our Journey to ‘Paperweight Mecca’”

• Review of Events: Spring Meeting, April 16, 2005• Announcement: 13th Anniversary Celebration

Weekend, July 16 & 17, 2005• Dated Reservations Tear-Off Slip

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