Pavonia

By Ed Thompson

I. Pattern Name

Pavonia (also known as Pineapple Stem)

II. Manufacturer

Ripley & Company, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and U.S. Glass Company

III. Date(s) of Production

Pavonia is first known to have been produced at Ripley & Co. in 1885. In 1891, Ripley became part of U.S. Glass, which continued to produce the pattern until at least 1905, as indicated by the inscription "Father 1905" that appears on a handled tumbler in my collection. Other dated pieces I have are from 1889 and 1893, on the occasion of the World's Fair.

Bill Jenks and Jerry Luna date the pattern at U.S. Glass to circa 1891-1898. It is illustrated in U. S. Glass Co. 1895 and 1989 catalogs, the 1894-1896 Montgomery Ward catalogs, the Butler Brother 1885 general merchandise catalog, and an undated catalog of national Merchandise Supply Co. of Chicago.

IV. Nature of the Glass and Range of Color.

Pavonia is a non-flint glass, found in clear, etched and ruby stained. It is unknown if any ruby-stained pieces were ever produced by Ripley & Co., but U.S. Glass did issue it, as evidenced by the dated pieces I have in my collection, ranging from 1893-1905. About 15% of the pieces I have seen have been ruby-stained. One third of these have etching for the home trade, one-third are souvenir items ("mother", "father" etc.) and the other one-third are ruby stained with no further decoration.

There are several etchings that can be found on Pavonia: Leaf Band (No. 77), Oak Leaf and Acorn (No. 106), Maple Leaf, Bird with Oak Ieaf and Acorn (No. 118), Wading Bird in marsh (No. 119), and Silhouetted Oak leaf and Acorn (No. 158).

Twice I have been told that Pavonia exists in green. A tumbler collector claimed to have one in that color and a dealer also stated having a green Pavonia pitcher. Requests for a photograph or to purchase the items went unanswered. Yet it might exist, given that fact that Beaded Grape (California) and Roanoke, both products of Factory F of U.S. Glass, produced similar patterns at the same time in green.

V. List of Known Pieces

The following pieces are in my collection:

Bowl 3 1/2"h, 8"d
Butter dish Footed, covered, 3 1/2"h without cover, 7 3/4"h with cover, 7"d, 4"d base
Cake stand Footed, 7"h, 10 1/4"d, 6"d base
Celery vase Flat, 6 3/4"h! 3 1/2"d, 3 3/4"d base
Celery vase Footed, 8"h, 3 1/2"d, 3 3/4"d base
Compote Open, 8"h, 8 1/4"d, 5"d base
Compote Jelly, covered, 2 3/4"h without cover, 3"h with cover, 4 1/4"d, 2 1/2"d base
Creamer Flat, 5"h, 3"d, 3 1/4"d base
Creamer Footed, 7 1/2"h, 3"d, 3 1/4"d base
Finger bowl With underplate, 1"h, 3 1/2"w
Underplate 6 1/2"d
Goblet 6 3/4"h, 3"d, 3 1/8"d base
Pickle dish 8"1, 5"w
Pitcher
Water 9 1/2"h, 4 1/2"d
Milk 6 1/2"h, 4 1/2"d
Lemonade 12"h, 4"d
Salt
Master 1 1/2"h, 3 1/2"d
Individual 7/8"h, 2"d
Sauce Flat, 1 1/ 2"h, 4"d
Sauce Footed, 3"h, 4"d
Shakers

Salt & pepper 3"h, 1 1/2"d
Spooner Flat, 4 3/8"h, 2 7/8"d, 3 1/2"d base
Spooner Footed, 6 1/2"h, 3"d, 3 1/2"d base
Sugar bowl Covered, flat, 3"h without cover, (5 1/4"h with cover), 4 1/8"d, 4 1/8"d base
Sugar bowl Covered, footed, 6 3/4"h without cover, (9"h with cover), 4"d, 3 3/4"d base
Tumbler 3 3/4"h, 2 7/8"d, 3"d base
Tumbler Handled, 4"h, 2 7/S"d, 3"d base
Water tray 1"h, 13"d, round
Wine 4"h, 1 3/4"d, 2"d base

The handled tumblers vary in scale. Most are normal tumbler size, ruby-stained, sometimes with inscriptions, to which a handle has been applied. These were undoubtedly products of IJ. S. Glass Company meant for the souvenir trade. One example I have has an uneven light stain with clear spots, probably an unsuccessful piece not intended for sale. An occasional piece also can be found in undecorated clear. I have one in my collection. I also have an unusual ruby-stained handled tumbler that was made from applying a handle to a flat spooner.

Thc "pineapple' on the stemmed or footed pieces may be either very rounded (full pineapple, as in the goblets) or narrower (3/4 pineapple. as in the spoonholders).

Vl. Reproductions

There are none known.

Vll. References

Bill Jenks and Jerry Luna, Early American Pattern Glass,1850-1910. Radnor, Pennsylvania: Wallace-Homestead Book Company, 1990, pp. 400-402

Corning Museum of Glass, American and European Pressed Glass

William Heacock and Fred Bickenhouser, Encyclopedia of Victorian Colored Pattern Glass, Book 5, U.S. . Glass from A to Z, Marietta, Ohio: Antique Publictions, Inc., 1978, pp. 43, 46.

Bill Edwards, Standard Encyclopedia of Pressed Glass,1986-1930.

William Heacock, Collecting Glass, Vol. 3.

Bob H. Blatty, A Complete Guide to Pressed Glass.

John and Elizabeth Welker, Pressed Glass in America: Encyclopedia of the First Hundred Years, 1825-1925, Ivyland, Pennslyvania: Antique Acres press, 19S5, Illustrated p. 422.

Kyle Husfloen, Collector's Guide to American Pressed Glass, 1825-1915.

VIII. Commentary and personal Profile
I am now retired after working 35 years in a steel mill. I have been collecting Pavonia pattern glass for twenty years. The collection began with two pieces that were in the family.