Collectors Facts - Inverted Prisms Tea Warmer, Josef Inwald
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Openings in the base of the Tea Warmer
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Shapes:
Tea Warmer
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Colours:
Marigold
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This is most definitely not a familiar Carnival Glass shape! If asked to name the more usual shapes, the answer would probably be bowls, plates, vases and tumblers .... then possibly water sets, table sets and boudoir items would be mentioned. Possibly even tobacciana shapes - cuspidors, ashtrays and even humidors.
DRGM moulded on base
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But a shape like the one above, with its straight sides and a castellated top edge?
It has a flanged ridge that runs around the entire inner circumference and supports the thin metal disc that you can see across the top of the piece in the photo. The metal disc is pierced in several parts and also has a central hole. Inside the item, in the very centre of the base, is a circular depression, where something might fit, and it does not hold water because there are three openings in the base. It sits on three small peg-shaped feet."DGRM" is moulded on the base. This stands for Deutsches Reich Gebrauchsmuster or Gebrauchsmusterschutz, which means a protected (copyright) design (also noted as the equivalent of "patent pending"). The British Library notes that the DRGM designation was used on "a simpler kind of invention than a patent". |
It took us a while to find out what is is!
The answer on the shape was found in a Brockwitz catalogue (below): it is a Tea Warmer.
The answer on the shape was found in a Brockwitz catalogue (below): it is a Tea Warmer.
Tea Warmer in Brockwitz catalogue
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The depression on the inside holds a small candle. The metal disc on the top is where a small teapot would be placed, the gentle heat from below keeps the tea (or infusion) warm. The peg feet keep it clear of the surface and the holes in the base allow air to be sucked up inside to keep the candle alight. But what about the pattern and the maker? The "DRGM" mark and the Brockwitz catalogue point us to that (German) maker. But, the pattern is Inverted Prisms, which is known to have been made by Rindskopf, as shown by the catalogue illustration below. The ridescence on our Tea Warmer is also more in keeping with Rindskopf's somewhat less vivid iridescence. However, there are no tea warmers shown in any Rindskopf catalogues that we have studied. 
Inverted Prisms in Rindskopf catalogue 12A
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The maker is Inwald
Inwald catalogue #25, 1914
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The answer was sitting in our "interesting archives" box where we had an extract from the Josef Inwald catalogue #25 from 1914. It had been sent to us by Milan Hlaves of the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. In the extract was this illustration (left) of a tea warmer. Note the pattern and the base. Note the three small squared feet. It looks very much like our Tea Warmer! There are more items in the "Inverted Prisms" pattern in Inwald's catalogues from the mid 1920s, although the shapes that are illustrated are not so far known in Carnival, and there are small differences in the way the pattern is interpreted that don't match up with iridised items that have been found. This poses some questions. Did Rindskopf copy the pattern and make their own range in Carnival? Possibly. Are there any more Inwald examples of the pattern in Carnival? The answer is "maybe". And there is still the nature of the iridescence on our Tea Warmer - not what we might expect from Inwald. Our feeling is that the Tea Warmer was probably quite an early piece - possibly made in 1914 or even earlier, when Inwald were just beginning to make Carnival, and the pattern was later taken up by Rindskopf. With sincere thanks to Pamela Wessendorf, Frank Andrews and Ivo Haanstra for help. |