Green Pressed Glass Double Inkstand

Overview

This set consists of a heavy, translucent green glass base and two matching, square-cut glass inkwells featuring fitted green glass lids.

The Base Tray

• Material & Color: Cast in a vibrant, translucent apple-green glass.
• Layout & Structure:
  • Inkwell Wells: Features two square, raised/beveled recesses designed to hold each inkwell securely in place.
  • Pen Ledges: Includes two parallel horizontal grooves along the front edge, designed as resting channels for dip pens.
• Design Details: Clean, geometric, Art Deco style aesthetic with beveled outer edges and crisp angles.

The Inkwells & Lids

• Inkwell Bodies:
  • Shape: Square block/cube form made of clear, heavy cut glass.
  • Bottom/Base: Features a deeply cut starburst/sunburst pattern on the underside.
  • Interior Well: Suspended central well/reservoir with a rounded bottom.
  • Rim: Smooth, rounded circular opening designed to receive the solid glass lid.
• Lids:
  • Material & Color: Solid, square block lids made of matching translucent green glass.
  • Top Decoration: Features an intricately cut starburst pattern inset within a circular medallion on the top surface.

Because this set is unmarked, a specific manufacturer’s name is not stamped on the glass; however, documentation from collector records provides clear context on its origin and period:

Origin & Attribution

• Who Made It: It was produced by an early 20th-century commercial glassworks company—most likely an American or European (British/Bohemian) pressed and cut-glass manufacture. Pressed uranium glass desk sets of this style were widely produced for office and home study use during this era.
• Where It Was Made: Likely manufactured in the United States or Western Europe (such as England or Bohemia/Czechoslovakia), which were the primary hubs for molded uranium glass and cut-crystal writing accessories at the time.
• When It Was Made: Circa 1910–1925. The clean geometric lines, square block reservoirs, and sunburst motifs represent the transitional period between late Edwardian design and early Art Deco aesthetic.

Note on Material: The vibrant apple-green base and lids are made of uranium glass (often called Vaseline or chartreuse glass), a popular colored glass from this period that glows brilliant neon green under ultraviolet/black light due to tiny trace amounts of uranium oxide.