A blown glass shade is a lamp or light shade made by blowing molten glass, either freely or into a mould, to form a bowl, globe, tulip, bell or dome. Such shades diffuse and direct the light of oil lamps, gas fittings and electric lights, and may be clear, frosted, coloured, etched, cut, cased or painted.
Blown shades became widespread in the nineteenth century with the growth of oil and gas lighting, when tall glass chimneys and decorative globes were needed for paraffin lamps and gasoliers. The arrival of electric light brought a huge variety of tulip shades, opaline pendants, Holophane-type prismatic shades and art glass designs, with makers such as Tiffany, Loetz, Steuben and Daum producing outstanding examples in iridescent and coloured glass. Victorian and Edwardian shades in cranberry, vaseline and opaline glass are particularly popular in Britain. Hand-blown shades can be recognised by slight irregularities, a ground or fire-polished rim and sometimes small bubbles in the glass. Buyers should check carefully for chips to the gallery rim, cracks and mismatched shades, as original matching sets are harder to find.
