Need your help with this WMF I/O water carafe?

Discussion in 'Pottery, Glass, and Porcelain' started by theone, Dec 18, 2017.

  1. theone

    theone New Member

    Hello everyone,

    I am glad to find this forum where I can learn about antiques from you. I started collecting vintage items since 2016. I recently found this item in a 2nd hand shop, just fell in love at first sight.
    It's a bit unusual to me that the top part and bottom are not the same material. On the bottom it is marked with WMF I/O, but the top part I guess is copper? No iron at all since I tried to put a magnet on it but it doesn't stay. I cannot find any information about such water carafe (if it is a carafe), and it's not a large piece. I would really appreciate if anyone could share some info about it with me - what are the materials? what's the use of it? when could it be made?
    Hope the photos help a bit.
    Thanks a lot for sharing your knowledge~
     

    Attached Files:

    yourturntoloveit likes this.
  2. dgbjwc

    dgbjwc Well-Known Member

    Hello and welcome theone! The bottom piece is silverplate. The mark matches one used by Wurttembergische metallwarenfabrik of Germany. The I/O is a code for normal thickness of gilding or silver-plating. I got the information here:
    http://www.silvercollection.it/WMF.html

    This information really only tells us who made the base. It's most likely that a different company made the glass and still another made the top. Then a fourth company may have put them all together. A best guess on age would be 1890 give or take a decade. All this is just my opinion - others may think differently. Knowing the exact size and how much it holds might be helpful. Some of these pieces were purely decorative and others were meant to be useful. Another name for this shape is ewer. I can see why you rescued it. It is lovely.
    Don
     
  3. clutteredcloset49

    clutteredcloset49 Well-Known Member

    The top may be silverplate as well.
    Looks like it might be missing a stopper.
    Lovely piece.

    Forgot to say it might be a claret jug
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2017
    yourturntoloveit likes this.
  4. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Welkom op het forum theone.:D
    There are several Dutch antiquers here, there is no getting away from them.;) I am one of them.

    Lovely ewer/claret jug, very elegant. As Don said, I can see why you rescued it.

    Just a request, when you post pictures, can you click on the 'full image' button? That way people on smartphones or with arthritic fingers can also see them. 'In full glory', to use a Dutch-ism. Here is some info:

    [​IMG]
     
    Aquitaine and judy like this.
  5. theone

    theone New Member

    Thank you Don for the information~ it was silly of me not to measure it first thing. from bottom to top of the handle is about 22cm, and the top part---in bright day light---i can think of with my limited knowledge---is probably made of tin, not copper (what was i thinking last night...:muted:)
    And with all the new terms i learned here, i found this online: https://www.popscreen.com/prod/MTIyMTk2ODIy/DIVINE-WMF-ART-NOUVEAU-CLARET-JUG-EWER-WITH-CHIMERA-eBay Exactly the same claret jug/ewer! still not much written info about it, but at least i know what it's used for now.:joyful:
     
    Any Jewelry likes this.
  6. theone

    theone New Member

    Thanks for the tips, by looking at the photo i found online, it does miss a stopper~ pity.. but i still love it. :happy:
     
  7. theone

    theone New Member

    Bedankt Any Jewelry~ I am actually still learning Dutch, after 16 years living here...:nailbiting::bookworm:
    I will pay attention to the photo posting next time, thanks a lot for the notice.
     
    Any Jewelry likes this.
  8. theone

    theone New Member

    I have to say with all your help i just found my new obsession~~~:D
    Any suggestion on how to clean the inside of glass part?
    Thanks.
     
  9. dgbjwc

    dgbjwc Well-Known Member

    I would try a little liquid dish washing soap like Dawn. I can't see the color very well but it seems even throughout the piece. Is it white glass or is the white caused by mineral deposits? If caused by mineral deposits there not be much you can do. If it disappears when wet and comes back when it's dry it may be permanently etched. I would not recommend using anything stronger than dish washing soap. Anything stronger might damage the metal.

    The metal collar at the top looks like brass in the example you found. It's possible that the collar was originally silver over brass. That silver coating would have been very thin and may have worn off much quicker than the thicker plating on the bottom. I would try a little silver polish just to see if any silver is under there somewhere. Just try a small area at first to see what happens.

    As for the missing stopper you may be able to find another metal or glass stopper which looks just as good. I'm not convinced the stopper in the example you found is original. As before please just take all this as just my opinion. I'm not an expert in this area but I'm more relying on my experience.

    Good luck with your collecting obsession. I have a lot of obsessions myself but am running out of space and need to learn to rein myself in. :playful:
    Don
     
    Any Jewelry likes this.
  10. clutteredcloset49

    clutteredcloset49 Well-Known Member

    @gregsglass

    I've used rice, ammonia and water. Let it sit and every time you walk by swish it. I've let things sit several months. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Keep the water level to the top.

    Hopefully greg has an idea.
     
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