Rocky Road!
Those Confusing Vases with Bumps and Swirls
Arising from (or based on) our original work in “Carnival Glass The Magic & The Mystery” 1997, and our subsequent research articles and writings.
Arising from (or based on) our original work in “Carnival Glass The Magic & The Mystery” 1997, and our subsequent research articles and writings.
One of the questions most often asked of us is how to tell the difference between the swung vases with bumps! April Showers, Rustic and Tree Trunk are the three difficult ones to distinguish, and we’ll add Swirled Hobnail (aka Hobnail Swirl) to the mix. Let’s just take a quick look at the big picture before we get to the crux of the matter.
Left to right: April Showers (Fenton), Rustic (Fenton), Tree Trunk (Northwood)
and Swirled Hobnail aka Hobnail Swirl (Millersburg).
and Swirled Hobnail aka Hobnail Swirl (Millersburg).
All four vases are found in a standard size, with base diameters around 3 to 3½ inches – it is these that cause the most confusion. The vases shown above range from 9 to 10 inches in height. Sometimes they have been swung a little more (or less), making them taller (or shorter). Extra height may distort the pattern further, while shorter versions show it more clearly.
Note: Rustic and Tree Trunk are also found in further sizes – but we are concentrating on the standard size vases in this article, as these are the ones that are seen most frequently and which present the puzzlement over identification.
Look at the lower part of the vase! They are distinctive.
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April Showers, Fenton
Tree Trunk, Northwood
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Rustic, Fenton
Hobnail Swirl, Millersburg
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April Showers (Fenton)
This has elongated hobnails that look like protruding ovals, which are connected vertically by long lines, rather like syrup drips. Sometimes, at the top of the interior, there may be a soft “peacock tail” pattern effect. The lower part of the vase is distinctive in that it has nine U shapes like scallops. The vase top is sometimes tightly crimped like the example shown here. 
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Rustic (Fenton)
Just the hobnails – nothing else. No drips, no lines, no swirls! Near the tops of the vases the hobnails are often quite round, whereas they become elongated and drawn out, further down the vase. 
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Tree Trunk (Northwood)
The hobnails are there, but they are surrounded by curly lines. These semi-circles or squiggles have been described as “tadpoles” which is very explanatory. 
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Swirled Hobnail (Millersburg)
The name describes it perfectly – hobnails interspersed with swirled lines. The entire background to the hobnails has these swirls, so it’s an easy one to identify. 
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