Wine Glass

Art Historical Context

This delicate wine glass, crafted by the Hobbs, Brockunier and Company around 1885–87, exemplifies the artistry of late 19th-century Americanmaking. Produced at the renowned Wheeling Glass Works in West, the firm was a leader in the post-Civil War boom of industrial glass production, blending European techniques with American innovation to create elegant tableware for growing middle-class households. Standing just 4 inches tall, this blown glass piece reflects the era's emphasis on refined domestic luxury, when finely crafted stemware symbolized sophistication at dinner parties. Blown glass, the medium here, involves gathering molten glass on a blowpipe and shaping it through skillful inflation and manipulation—often free-blown for fluid forms or mold-blown for precise patterns. Hobbs, Brockunier specialized in such "fancy" wares, using brilliant colors and intricate designs that rivaled imported European crystal but at more accessible prices. This technique allowed for lightweight yet sturdy vessels, ideal for everyday use while showcasing technical prowess. Housed in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, the glass was a generous gift from Mrs. Emily Winthrop Miles in 1946, preserving a slice of Gilded Age elegance. It invites us to appreciate how American artisans democratized beauty, turning simple wine service into an art form.

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...