Miasmic Diddle

These delicate convex glass discs very likely served as covers for clock faces. They are antique, made by Leo Popper & Sons, a glass company that operated for 91 years as manufacturers, importers, wholesalers and distributors of glass articles. According to www.glassian.org, it was Popper who supplied the glass for the Statue of Liberty's replacement torch (damaged in the Black Tom explosion in 1916). You can find a great essay on the history of Leo Popper & Sons on the Glassian website here.

When Leo Popper & Sons finally closed in 1971, Whittemore-Durgin bought their stock on hand, and some of their unusual items are still in stock at W-D today.

These unique clock covers have a thin beveled edge, and can be used like a rondel in your stained glass work with foil or lead. You could sandwich some of our pressed flowers, or some thin and delicate ephemera, in between two of these thin discs and then wrap the whole thing in foil. Or try etching the glass using one of our large supply of etching stencils. We'd love to see what you end up doing with them!

Package of 6.

These 7/8" x 1/2" glass dolls' eyes were made prior to 1912. They are flat-backed, and come as two separate pieces: the sclera (the white part) and the iris. (Technically speaking, our glass iris includes the cornea as well). The iris is clear, or may contain traces of paint from its days in the factory as it waited to become a doll's eye. It is up to you to paint the pupil (presumably black) and the iris (whatever color suits your fancy). When you receive the doll's eye, you might be inclined to think that these two pieces don't look like much (as it were), but once you color them and join them with a tiny dab of glue, the eye will come to life. (Only figuratively, of course.) 

These doll's eyes were manufactured by Leo Popper & Sons of Brooklyn, N.Y. The company manufactured many unusual glass items like elevator buttons, railroad warning light lenses, and hatpin heads. They also provided the glass for the Statue of Liberty's torch after it was damaged by the explosion of a munitions ship in New York Harbor in World War I (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Tom_explosion).

Mr. Ferguson of Roanoke writes "I used to have a problem with solitary drinking. Now I stick one of your dolls' eyes into one of my olives in place of the pimento, and drop it into my Martini. This way I don't feel so alone."