Cameo Glass: from
the Glass Encyclopedia

Cameo glass is multi-layered glass on which a picture has been carved through the layers so that it stands out in relief from the surface and the coloured layers form the contrasts of the picture. The simplest form of cameo glass has only two layers like the blue and clear glass vase on the left.

The word cameo actually applies to any carving in which the picture is raised above the surrounding surface; but in the glass world, it is only used for carving where there is more than one coloured layer to the glass.

The surrounding glass may be cut away using hand tools, the oldest and most skilful method; or by using a cutting wheel, or with hydrofluoric acid (which eats away glass).

The best quality cameo glass comes from four sources:

1: Roman cameo glass made two thousand years ago by artisans using hand tools. The famous Portland Vase is an example.

2: English cameo glass made from the mid 19th century by such artists as John Northwood and George Woodall (their copy of the Portland Vase is a superb example).

3: French cameo glass made in the late 19th century until the second world war by such great artists as Emile Galle, the Daums, and Muller Freres.

4: Recent US cameo glass primarily from Kelsey Murphy and her colleagues at Pilgrim Glass.

There was a small amount of cameo glass made by others, including Steuben and Tiffany in the USA and several art glass studios making high quality contemporary cameo glass. Note that Peking cameo glass from China predates the European production and was made from the 18th century.

Cameo glass is made today in several European countries and in China, in reproduction French designs. Many of these pieces are beautiful. They are sometimes marked with a signature (eg Galle) and the word "typ" in front, meaning "after the style of". Unfortunately some people have been known to remove the word "typ" and pass the piece off as original. If you want early 20th century French cameo glass, it is wise to buy from a reputable dealer who specialises in that kind of glass, many of whom do sell on the internet.

If you are looking for cameo glass, check what there is on ebay just now - - click Cameo glass

Glass Blog
- take a look

• Magic in the Mountains: Kelsey Murphy, Robert Bomkamp, and the West Virginia Cameo Glass Revolution (Sept 2012) by Donna Meredith.
• Roman Cameo Glass in the British Museum (2010) by Paul Roberts, William Gudenrath, Veronica Tatton-Brown and David Whitehouse.
• The Cameo Glass of Thomas and George Woodall by Christopher Woodall Perry, July 2006.
• Daum: Masters of French Decorative Glass by Clotilde Bacri, May 1993.
• French Cameo Glass by Henry and Berniece Blount, 1980.
• English Cameo Glass in the Corning Museum of Glass (First Edition 1994) by David Whitehouse.
• English Cameo Glass (Dec 1988) by Ray and Lee Grover.
• Cameo Glass: Masterpieces from 2000 Years of Glassmaking (May 1982) by Sidney Goldstein, Leonard S. Rakow and Juliette K. Rakow.
• George Woodall and the Art of English Cameo Glass 32 pages on the Bill & Irma Runyon Collection.
• Artistry in glass: Cameo glass by Kelsey Murphy (1995) by Kelsey Murphy. [exhibition] New Orleans Museum of Art
• The Portland Vase: The Extraordinary Odyssey of a Mysterious Roman Treasure , 2005 Edition, (2005 edition) by Robin Brooks. The fascinating story of this vase, its history and its features. Excellent five star reviews.
• The Breaking and Remaking of the Portland Vase (1989 ) K. S. Painter and Nigel Williams. A British Museum publication.
• The Portland Vase (Dec 2004 reprint) by Susan Walker (British Museum Objects in Focus).