In the 1880s, when a couple married, someone gave them this. Bride's baskets were the wedding gift of the Victorian era — an ornate glass bowl cradled in a silver-plated frame, made to sit at the center of a newlywed table and hold fruit, flowers, or simply the light. The Topaz comes from J.H. Hobbs, Brockunier & Co. of Wheeling, West Virginia, one of the great American glasshouses: their Hexagon Block pattern below, a hand-etched garland of flowers and leaves across the amber-flashed rim above, glowing topaz where the light comes through. Her frame carries the theme in metal — molded strawberries, vines, and leaves climbing the handle. Nearly a century and a half old, and she still stops the room.
J.H. Hobbs, Brockunier & Co., circa 1880–1890. Approx. 9" to top of handle, 12" wide (strawberry to strawberry).
An original set — the bowl seats squarely in her frame with no rocking. Amber flashing vibrant and even; etching crisp; the frame's molded strawberries still sharp, never over-polished or re-plated. Condition like this, at her age, is the exception.
