Mid-Century Modern Black and Gold Atomic Starburst Highball Glasses in Holder, Set of Eight
American, Circa 1955-1965

This set of eight Mid-Century Modern highball glasses in its black metal holder carries a bold black, white and 22 K gold atomic starburst design. Each straight-sided glass, with a thick weighted base, is enameled with a series of black-bordered rectangles of varying size, set vertically around the body with two horizontal rectangles of different sizes on each side, the panels linked by narrow bars of white enamel so that the whole reads as a Mondrian-like framework. Within each black rectangle is a reserve of frosted white enamel on which a gold starburst radiates from a central point, its rays extending across the white and onto the black border. The rims are left clear.

The black metal holder has a raised loop handle at each side wrapped in white plastic, creating a black-and-white design with the black of the metal that echoes the scheme of the glasses.

A complete set of eight in its original carrier, these glasses suit a bar cart, a sideboard or a wet bar in a Mid-Century Modern or Hollywood Regency room, where the black, white and gold scheme sits well with brass, walnut and lacquer. The holder allows the set to be kept on display and carried to the table.

Dimensions
Overall in holder:
Length: 15 3/4 inches (40.0 cm)
Width: 8 1/4 inches (21.0 cm)
Height: 6 1/4 inches (15.9 cm)
Glasses:
Height: 5 1/2 inches (14.0 cm)
Diameter: 2 3/4 inches (7.0 cm)

Marks
Unmarked.

Provenance
Earle D. Vandekar of Knightsbridge

Condition
Good. No chips, cracks or rubbing to the enamel or gilding.

Historical Context
Decorated barware of this type was produced in great quantity by American glass houses in the decade after 1955, above all the Federal Glass Company of Columbus, Ohio, and Libbey Glass of Toledo, whose machine-made tumbler blanks were screen-printed with ceramic enamels and fired gold and sold by the set, often in a wire or sheet-metal carrier. Starburst and "atomic" motifs drew on the Space Age imagery of the period, and the black, white and gold palette belongs to the smart cocktail-hour taste of the late 1950s and early 1960s.

The maker of this set is not recorded. The heavy weighted base of the glasses and the gold-on-black-enamel decoration are consistent with Federal Glass production, to which black and gold starburst barware is most often attributed in the trade, but the glasses are unmarked and no pattern name has been traced in the makers' published catalogues.


Condition:
Alterations: Original Condition Unaltered
Imperfections: Some Imperfections
Condition Notes: Very good condition

Origin:
United States

Materials & Techniques:
Glass, Gold

Details:
Country of Origin: United States
What type of item is it? Vintage / Antique / Used

Original Condition Unaltered; Some Imperfections; Very good condition