Wine Glass

Art Historical Context

This delicate wine glass, crafted by the Hobbs, Brockunier and around 1885–87, exemplifies the finesse of late 19th-century Americanmaking. Produced in Wheeling, West Virginia—one of America's glassmaking hubs—this blown glass piece stands just 4 5/8 inches tall, perfect for intimate toasts at Gilded Age dinners. The company's innovative techniques helped elevate U.S. glass from utilitarian wares to elegant tableware, rivaling European imports during a booming industrial era. Blown glass, the medium here, involves gathering molten glass on a blowpipe and shaping it with breath and tools, allowing for the slender stem and flared bowl that define this form. Hobbs, Brockunier specialized in such free-blown and patterned glass, contributing to the Aesthetic Movement's emphasis on beauty in everyday objects. Its petite scale highlights the precision required, making it both functional and ornamental. Now housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, thanks to a 1946 gift from Mrs. Emily Winthrop Miles, this wine glass offers a glimpse into American craftsmanship at its peak. Visitors can appreciate how such pieces graced Victorian homes, blending utility with subtle artistry.

About the Artist

Hobbs, Brockunier and Company · 1863–1891

**J. H. Hobbs, Brockunier and Company**, a pioneering American glass manufacturer, traces its origins to 1845 when John L. Hobbs and James B. Barnes, both former supervisory employees at the prestigious New England Glass Company in Massachusetts, leased the idle South Wheeling Glass Works in what is now Wheeling, West Virginia. After several reorganizations amid partner changes—including the addit...