Depression Glass Reproductions

For many years Depression Glass has been reproduced by firms from all over. Below is a list of patterns and shapes we know to be reproduced. If you know of others to add to this list, please let us know.

ADAM

Butter Dish--Pink, Green Repro: veins in the leaves on lid do not join or touch in center of leaf, Bottom: On the old, large leaves point to center of each side (North, South, East, West) On the repro, they point off center (northeast, etc) Very poor mold on both top and bottom.

AVOCADO

Avocado was originally made in pink, green and crystal: white pitcher & tumbler sets that were made by Indiana in the 1950's. Yellow, red, blue, amethyst and frosted colors are all reproductions made by Tiara from 1974 through the 1980's. Pink and green were also made by Tiara but are different from the original colors as follows: New pink has an orange tint rather than the soft pink of the old color. New green is darker than the original.

BALTIMORE PEAR

Compote, marked with a paper label on the base, Made in France.

CAMEO

Shakers have been made in green, pink and cobalt. Pattern is weak, too much glass in the bottom of shaker, cobalt was never originally made. Above the foot is filled in with about 1/4"-1/2" of glass. Mosser Company has made a line of children's miniature sets (called 'The Jennifer Line') with the Cameo pattern. As children's dishes were never made, these miniatures pose no problem.

CHERRY BLOSSOM

The following pieces have been reproduced in any or all of these colors: pink, green, light blue, delphite, cobalt, red and iridized colors. As pink, delphite and green are the only original colors made, they are the ones that pose problems. Round 2 handled tray footed cake plate 8 1/2 inch bowl cereal bowl dinner plate cup & saucer shakers Children's sets Scalloped bottom pitcher, All Over Pattern 13 inch divided platter footed tumbler butter dish & cover In general, repro pieces are badly molded.

The pattern is crudely done, with branches and leaves lacking texture (leaf edges are straight instead of serrated, no bark on branches) and the flowers not as detailed. Pieces tend to be heavier than the originals, with crooked handles and off set mold lines. For specifics on each piece, check your Florence Depression Glass encyclopedia.

COLUMBIA

Juice glasses marked "France"

FLORAL POINSETTIA

Shakers are found in cobalt, red and a dark green color, none of which were originally made. There is also a pink reproduction that is very close to the original. New shaker have a continuous thread where the top screws on: old shakers have a pair of threads that end before the mold seam on the side. Also, the pattern is molded on top of the base on new shakers and underneath on the old - so you must turn them over to see the pattern on the base.

FLORENTINE 1

Shakers have been found in pink, red, and cobalt. The pattern is very badly done, red & cobalt are not original colors.

FLORENTINE 2

Pitcher & tumbler sets in red, dark green, cobalt, and two different pinks have been made. None of these colors were originally made.

IRIS & HERRINGBONE

The reproduction Iris & Herringbone, 6", Crystal, Water Tumblers, and the originals are both the exact same size. They both have the smooth rays on the foot. Although the repro's ray edges may be just slightly sharper than on the originals, but it's probably way too close for the novice collector to tell the difference. The Herringbone pattern is one key. It's not even near as clear, sharp and vivid as on the originals. But still close enough to fool even a good eye.

Now...just like on the 6 1/2" Ice Tea Tumbler, one quick way to tell the difference is, flip your tumbler upside down. Can you see the "Mold" line at all on the foot? On the originals, the "Mold" line is "Very" visible when you look at it from this perspective. However, with the reproduction tumbler, if you have a VERY good eye and or an magnifying glass, you might could see the "Mold" line when looking at it from the bottom side. If you have to look that hard to see it, it's probably an reproduction.

One other way to tell is, on the original 6" Water Tumbler, just like on the original 6 1/2" Ice Tea Tumbler, there are (4) sides to each of these tumblers. Let me explain. There are (4) Iris Flower designs. The two opposite each other should be exactly the same identical design, matching each other perfectly. If there's any difference at all, then it's probably an reproduction.

You can't tell the difference between the two by feeling the hole in the bottom of the tumbler foot. They both have the exact same type and style of hole in them both, with the exact same number of rays on the foot as well.

One sure fire way to tell if your 6" Water Tumbler is the "Real Deal" or not is, just to the right of the Iris flower design, you have a very long stem, kind of thick one, coming from the bottom of the tumbler to the top edge of the flower on the right side of the flower, curving slightly to the left at the top as it ends. It has been crossed, or X 'ed towards the top of the stem, with a partial stem. If you turn the tumbler to the exact opposite side it should match exactly. If it doesn't and it's only half X'ed, or not X'ed at all, it's an reproduction. The opposing sides will not match this side, the pattern is different, but should match each other exactly perfectly as well.

LORAIN

In the 1950's, the footed sherbet with an open lace edge was produced in milk glass and avocado for use as a florist bowl - colors never made during the depression. These were probably made by Anchor Hocking instead of Indiana - who produced Lorain originally - as some have been found with Hocking's paper labels.

MADRID

In 1976, Federal reissued this pattern for the Bicentennial under the name "Recollection". Pieces were made in amber, but marked with a 76 in the design to distinguish old from new. Indiana Glass bought the molds when Federal closed, removed the 76 and made crystal. Since then, pieces have been made in blue, pink and a light 'coke bottle green-blue' color. The new blue is brighter than the original color, the new pink is too light. Many pieces have been made, some by combining two old items into a new one: the candlestick on a 10 inch plate became the pedestal cake stand; a tumbler on the candlestick base is sold as a hurricane lamp/vase, and the butter dish on the candlestick makes the footed candy dish. Reproductions of old pieces tend to be too heavy, the wrong color and sloppily molded. Study your depression glass encyclopedia so you know what's original and what's not.

MANHATTAN

Similar to Manhattan, Anchor Hocking produced 'Park Avenue' from 1987-93 and then again in the late 1990's in crystal and light 'sapphire blue.' Light blue was never made, and shapes were changed so as to maintain the integrity of the original crystal pieces. If you find something that's not listed in the Depression glass encyclopedias, it's part of the Park Avenue line NOT Manhattan.

MAYFAIR (OPEN ROSE)

Cookie jars, shot glasses, small juice pitchers and salt/pepper shakers have been reproduced in pink (more orange than the original, green (both too dark and the wrong shade), cobalt, amethyst, red, amberina, and pink slag. The pattern is very weak on all items; pitcher and cookie bottoms lack the circular mold mark on the bottom, the shots have too much glass in the bottom.

MISS AMERICA

Reproduced in pink, green( wrong shade) red amberina, cobalt, crystal and ice blue as follows: Repro flat tumblers have 2 mold seams instead of 4. Repro pitchers are missing the ice lip and the 'hump' in the top edge that old pitchers have by the handle to help grasp when pouring. New shakers are 3 1/4 inch tall and have too much glass on the inside - old are 3 3/8 inch tall and fill all the way to the bottom with salt. New butter dishes have a lump of glass sticking out (convex) under the knob; old are concave (curved in).

PINEAPPLE & FLORAL (No 618)

Indiana reissued the diamond shaped comport and the 7 inch bowl in pink, cobalt, avocado, and crystal with sprayed on colors. Only crystal was originally made so the other colors are no problem. Both items tend to be roughly molded and heavier than the originals. The new 7 inch bowls also have smooth rims instead of the wavy rim that the old bowls have.

PRINCESS

Candy jars and shakers have shown up in cobalt, amber, light blue, pink and green. Both are poor quality, badly molded with bubbles and a greasy feel to the glass. The colors are wrong and some are marked 'China' with a paper label.

PYRAMID (No.610)

In 1974-5, Indiana produced the berry bowl, 4 part relish, and tumbler, in blue and black as part of their Tiara line. These colors were never made originally.

ROYAL LACE

The cookie jar, juice and water tumbler have been reproduced in cobalt blue. Cookie jar: The mold is very poor, with lots of bubbles in the glass and a very weak pattern. Old lids should have a mod seam running across the knob (divides the lid into 2 halves.) New ones are missing this seam. Tumblers: Some are missing the design in the base. Thicker glass and shorter than the originals with too much glass in the bottom of the tumbler.

SHARON

Reproduction items in pink, dark green, blue, light green, opalescent blue, red and dark amber have shown up. Butter dish, covered candy, cheese dish, sugar & creamer, salt & pepper all have been made and can be found with "Made in Taiwan" labels. As only amber, pink and light green are original colors, they are the only ones to pose a problem for collectors. New Sharon is poorly molded, too thick with a greasy feel and lots of bubbles in the glass. The knobs on the butter, cheese and candy lids are too high - look stretched instead of the squat, hard to grasp older pieces. The pattern on the shakers does not look like roses; instead it looks like a pinwheel. The sugar & creamer are too light and of such bad quality that they are obviously new.

THISTLE

Butter dish, pitcher and tumbler.


NOTE: From Nicole - or contact us for your depression glass

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