It’s got to be Art! In 2007 we had only been collecting marbles for a few years and our focus was on glass mid-20th century American machine-made marbles. However, we had learned about stone (and agate), clay, and other marble materials and we had seen all sorts of handmade art marbles online and in a few shops. For Christmas … [Read more...] about Contemporary Art Glass Marbles
Archives
Girls Are Crack Shots With A Marble
“Boston boys are sore because the girls are playing marbles. Gee whiz, hoaly smoak, paw, isn’t there any limit to sex invasion?” Evening Public Ledger, Philadelphia, PA, March 22, 1922, Night Extra, Page 8. Their Marble Playing Blazed a Trail for Others “Hoaly Smoak”! In recent posts we have noted that we enjoy browsing in the … [Read more...] about Girls Are Crack Shots With A Marble
A Nest of Monkeys
"It is a bold mouse that makes her nest in the cat's ear." --- Danish Proverb A Few Thoughts about Nests Yellow Jackets make their nests in the ground. Storks make nests; so do osprey. Machine gunners use nests and sometimes snipers, too. Alligators, blue birds, some spiders curl leaves into nests. Bees, and whole families of … [Read more...] about A Nest of Monkeys
Cave Pearls and Marbles
File: Cave Pearls—Rookery, Lower Cave, Carlsbad Cavern (51202462532).jpg[1] “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” Hamlet, I.5 Cave What? We wrote about natural marbles in one of our earliest posts Marbles from Mother Nature. One type, Cave Pearls, is an international … [Read more...] about Cave Pearls and Marbles
A Lead-Clad Marble
Yep, a Lead-Clad Glass Marble: But Why? We learn a lot of interesting things from the comments we receive from this magazine and from emails from readers of our book The Secret Life of Marbles. We enjoy hearing from readers. Just awhile ago we received this intriguing email sent from an iphone. A Remarkable Email “I found this … [Read more...] about A Lead-Clad Marble
The Art of Making Marbles in the 21st Century
He's Got Marbles! Today, in America, fewer commercial factories make glass marbles than are made by artists and in hot glass studios. We have posted before about two great marble makers, Dave McCullough and Sammy Hogue, who are transitioning to small batch marble production. Also, all across America, glass artists make … [Read more...] about The Art of Making Marbles in the 21st Century
Road Trip to West Virginia III
“Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall….” Daniel 5:5-12 “Everybody’s Leaving Town….”[1] This old truck is ready to haul one more load of scrap glass down from Pennsylvania or one more truck load of crated marbles to the rail depot. It was a misty cool morning as we climbed down the ridge … [Read more...] about Road Trip to West Virginia III
West Virginia Here We Come Part II
“Summits bathed in glory….” “Life is Old There….” This is a view of Middle Island Creek taken from the Rails to Trails trestle near West Union. The Trail continues into the town of about 670. The town and this portion of the Creek are in Doddridge County. Middle Island Creek meanders along slowly, through the jug handle, for 77 … [Read more...] about West Virginia Here We Come Part II
West Virginia Here We Come!
“Almost Heaven….” Wild & Wonderful Some of our readers live in West Virginia and they have the luxury of exploring the wild and wonderful State at their leisure. Others of us have visited many times, explored the Rails to Trails and other hiking trails, and seen mink in the wetland., We know for certain that black bears … [Read more...] about West Virginia Here We Come!
Playing Marbles As Shown on Dutch Tiles
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam. “Tiles with Scenes of Children Playing”; BK-1955-328-A; Netherlands ca. 1680 – 1730; Tin glazed earthenware majolica; height c. 107 cm × width c. 80 cm; Used with Permission Wie wat bewaart, die heeft wat . Who saves, has something. Old Dutch saying. 400 Years of Playing Marbles & Other Children’s … [Read more...] about Playing Marbles As Shown on Dutch Tiles
Once Upon A Time in America
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard Finding Something You’re Not Looking For In August we published two stories, “What a Spectacle!” about marble tournament competition medals. In the stories we explain how we found the online Library of Congress newspaper archive at the … [Read more...] about Once Upon A Time in America
What a Spectacle! The Rest of the Story
“What is history, but a fable agreed upon?”---Napoleon Bonaparte On The Hunt for Marble Competition Medals We had been learning about marble competition medals, as told in the first part of this story, for many years before we ever found one for sale. We had had no luck finding one until we visited an antique shop in Tifton, … [Read more...] about What a Spectacle! The Rest of the Story
