All Photographs by Jo Garrett
Just take a look at this! Ever seen anything else like it? Neither had we! We saw this glass marble-covered vase recently in The Coastal Magpie (https://www.coastalmagpie.com/), which is one our very favorite shops in Ocean Springs[1], Mississippi, and we were gobsmacked!
Ocean Springs is a delightful small town to visit. It has a wonderful downtown with delicious food, neat antique stores, an old-fashioned toy and candy shop and so much more. And don’t forget to visit the beach. It is home to a vibrant community of artists and artisans and it is home to the Peter Anderson Festival.
The Coastal Magpie features these local artists’ original artwork. You can see some of it in the background of the feature photograph. They offer, jewelry, pottery, wonderful “metal critters” which are some of our favorite, art, note cards, and postcards. Larry usually has to be pulled away from the antique linen postcards. Many are over one hundred years old.
UV & Cadmium[2]
Some of the marbles, which are mostly 1930s – mid-20th century American, are UV reactive. As you may know, uranium (Uranium-238 or Uranium-235) glass contains uranium oxide. It glows brightly under ultraviolet light since it has fluorescent properties.
You know that soft pink glow you can get in some marbles when using a UV light? Well, that is cadmium glass which contains cadmium sulfide. In natural light the addition of cadmium to glass produces deep red, bright orange, and yellow hues.
Here we edited the picture to give you an idea about how some of these individual marbles look under black light. You can also see a few of our favorites in detail. Just look at that caramel shooter to the right on the vase. We used to have one like it and the one we had was a hand-and machine hybrid sometimes called a transitional. And look at the bright orange-red ribbon on an opaque white base to the left: A gorgeous Alley shooter like they made in Sistersville, West Virginia.
There are a few clays worked in with bumble bees. We can’t imagine how long it would take to identify all of the marbles. It is a fantastic work of art. Where did the artist get all the marbles!
More Information
We will let you read the sign which sits next to the vase. Ok, we know that artists must use some type of mounting putty or adhesive putty to affix objects to a surface—in this case marbles are stuck to a glass vase. We understand that the artist made the hand blown vase himself.
While we are not artists we know that the type putty used should not damage what it is stuck to—in this case the marbles. You can buy putty like this online and it is often marketed as museum putty. As a rule, this museum putty is strong, pliable, non-damaging, and reusable.
The sign says that the putty used to keep the marbles on the glass is “dust putty” made from “…old collected dust found in attics of the Northern Pennsylvania area.” Wow, we have never heard of such thing. Of course “Northern Pennsylvania” is a vast area ranging from Scranton to Oil City.
We can’t imagine ever taking these marbles off the vase and destroying the artwork. But we do wonder just how many qualities of museum putty this dust adhesive has.
And finally, the vase does have a price: $5,500.00.
Check It Out! The next time you are in Coastal Mississippi give Ocean Springs a look. You won’t be disappointed. And while in Ocean Springs spend some time in The Coastal Magpie. However, we can’t imagine how long the artwork vase may stay in the shop unsold!
References
- The area around Ocean Springs, which was named Lynchburg Springs when the first post office opened in 1853, was first occupied by the French as the first settlement in French Louisiana in 1699. See “Five Centuries on Biloxi Bay: A Chronology of Ocean Springs, Mississippi” @ https://www.oceanspringsarchives.net/five-centuries-biloxi-bay-chronology-ocean-springs-mississippi/ (5/26/2025). You might also want to check the “City History” @ https://oceansprings-ms.gov/172/City-History/ 5/26/2025 ↑
- If you want to read more about UV marbles then we recommend: https://www.mychemicalfreehouse.net/2023/03/is-uranium-glass-safe-or-dangerous.html (5/26/2025); https://vintagebeedesign.com/blogs/news/why-does-it-glow-more-than-just-uranium-glass-clear-glass-can-glow-under-blacklight-too/ (5/26/2025); and https://www.reddit.com/r/uraniumglass/comments/17o3djk/is_this_cadmium_glass_and_is_it_food_safe/ 5/26/2025 ↑
