The Candlewick stemware described on these pages were all produced
by The Imperial Glass Company. The 3800 series, the 3400 series and the
400/190 series will all be described in sufficient detail to allow a comparative
judgment as to authenticity of other pieces. The early production (1936
through 1973) provided only 3 original colors of glass, Crystal, Ruby and
Ritz Blue. In addition, colors which were produced during the later years,
until 1983, under the ownership of Lenox Glass will be shown for comparison.
The stemware will be described to the best of my knowledge and of others
who have so willingly shared their personal collections and expertise for
the purpose endeavored here. I personally owe praise to Mrs. Mary M. Wetzel-Tomalka
for her documentation of Candlewick in her series of books and for her
willingness to personally answer questions requiring an extensive knowledge
of Candlewick glassware. I also wish to thank Mr. and Mrs. Michael J. Wilson
and Mr. and Mrs. Brian Punke for sharing some of their personal collections
of 3400 and 400/190 series, therefore allowing documentation of some of
the items described below. Please be aware that the dimensions given are
measurements of pieces from collections and that they will vary slightly
since these were all hand-blown stems.
In the 3400 and 3800 stemware lines, one of the most prominent features
other than the beaded stems is the "Candlewick Wafer" which is an approximately
1/8" thick disk of glass placed between the stem and the bowl. This is
a round disk with no markings or striations. Cambridge utilized a similar
disk in their 3103 line but it can be differentiated by ".....under the
wafer is a small section or circle of 8 vertical panels." as described
by Mrs. Wetzel-Tomalka on page 132 of Candlewick, The Jewel of Imperial,
Book II. |