Frederick S. Shirley (American, active 1873–1894)
Mount Washington Glass Company (American, 1837–1900)
New Bedford, Massachusetts
Sicilian Vase
INV-1500
Frederick S. Shirley (American, active 1873–1894)
Mount Washington Glass Company (American, 1837–1900)
New Bedford, Massachusettsc. 1878
vaseglass
Date
c. 1878
Medium
Glass
Dimensions
20.3 × 15.2 cm (8 × 6 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Through prior acquisitions of Mrs. Sydney Haskins, Mrs. Justus L. Johnson, Mary Louise Stevenson, Mrs. Theodore D. Tieken and Russell Tyson
This vase exemplifies the first group of artistic glassware patented by the Mount Washington Glass Company. Frederick S. Shirley, an English-born and trained glassmaker, introduced the Sicilian line, which was inspired by excavations of the ancient city of Pompeii in the 1860s and included the chemical elements of volcanic lava in its ingredients. Shirley also developed the process of fusing separate shards of glass in the body of his Sicilian wares, resulting in the unusual appearance of these vibrantly colored vessels.