TEARDROP GLASS PAPERWEIGHT Green & Clear JOE RICE- 2002

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AWESOME JOE RICE PAPERWEIGHT Offered for your consideration is a wonderful TEARDROP SHAPED GLASS PAPERWEIGHT by JOE RICE. The base has a wonderful CLEAR air trapped bubble design. It measures 5.5 inches tall by 3 inches wide. Condition is excellent - Near Mint t are no chips, cracks or scratches. Please view the pictures. The bottom is marked (JOE RICE 2002) ! This item will only grow in value. This could be a wonderful addition for your collection, or a great gift for someone . Joe Rice is the Great-Grandson of John St. Clair. I have copied a bit of history for anyone not knowing St. Clair glass,I found it interesting and thought you may too. Joe Rice is the great-grandson of John St. Clair a glassworker who immigrated to Indiana from Alsance- Lorraine, France. The discovery of abundant natural gas in 1887 and the availability of sand in central Indiana made Elwood a thriving center for the glass industry. Many European glassworkers like John St. Clair came to Elwood to work in the new glass houses. John St. Clair passed the craft on to his son John B. (Pop) St. Clair. Pop began working for the MacBeth-Evans Glass Company in Elwood w he discovered his passion for making paperweights. Pop often worked after hours perfecting his craft, which he taught his five sons. By 1937 the MacBeth-Evans plant closed and Pop and two of his sons went to work at a glass house in West Virginia. In 1938 Pop?s son Joe started St. Clair Glass and was joined by Pop and his brothers Bob and Paul three years later. By the age of 16, Joe Rice?s uncles Joe and Bob had taught him the craft of making paperweights, which made Joe the youngest paperweight artist in the country. In the 1930s and 1940s hand-crafted glass paperweights and vases were considered novelty items. It was not until the late middle of the Twentieth Century that the studio glass movement created an interest in glass as an art form by collectors. Early pioneers like Dale Chihuly and Harvey Littleton?s inspirational art glass brought the craft as an art form to new levels. Today, master gaffer Joe Rice continues the St. Clair tradition with The House of Glass in Elwood, Indiana which Joe?s uncle Bob originally operated as the St. Clair House of Glass. Tom St. Clair is also continuing the family tradition in nearby Anderson, Indiana with Tom St. Clair Studio Glass. Joe Rice?s glassmaking process is essentially the same that his uncles and grandfather created using a five-member team. The process starts by taking time to mix their crystal batch for 3 ? hours using a cement mixer. The ingredients for the glass batch are silica sand, limestone, sodium ash, and feldspar. The batch is placed into the furnace for 24 hours at about 2600 degrees. For color Joe uses cullet form the nearby Kokomo Opalescence Glass Company. The cullet is ground and screened in 350-lb units and used for decorating his art glass. Many of the tools used by Joe Rice?s team were made by his uncles or were made at the old MacBeth-Evans Blacksmith shop in the 1920s. View my feedback and buy with confidence ! QUESTIONS ???? Contact me at ( ). Thank you for your interest and good luck. ******* Payment I accept the following forms of payment: PayPal ( All major credit cards are accepted through Paypal ) Money Order Cashier Check Wire Transfer Debit Card Personal Check (5 to 10 business days to clear) Payment due in 7 days please International Payment - Paypal or Postal Money Order in US Dollars. - Credit cards are accepted through Paypal. SHIPPING > Continental US - Please enter your zip code into the calculator below to figure exact shipping cost. This item will ship U SP S Priority Mail - Delivery Confirmation is Included ! I will be happy to reduce shipping cost by combining items whenever possible. Please contact us for a quote on multiple purchases. For quotes to, US Territories or International Destinations, please contact us BEFORE you bid. ... read more

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