I picked this up at an antique flea market. I would like to know if this is an arts & crafts piece. If so, what time period is it from? The metal frame is as heavy as iron, and 13" in diameter. The swirls near the base have crane heads, and the top have butterflies. The glass has bubbles of a lighter coloured glass. I am looking at getting a suitable base for it.

Any information would be appreciated.

Let us welcome you to the forum. Your shade is wonderful and falls with what I consider the Arts & Crafts Movement.

I have never seen anything like it and it appears to be cast iron with a mottled slag glass slumped into it. You might wish to test the metal with a magnet. Please let us know if it sticks.

Please be sure to show us the base you get for it.

My hats off to your keen eye and wise purchase.

Many thanks for your comments. I tested the metal with a magnet, but it does not stick to the frame. Obviously it is not iron then. Does this have any bearing on the authenticity of the shade? Is there anything else I can test for?

Regards

Good Morning Friends,
Through some research I have done pertaining to lamp shades of this nature are indeed a lead/zinc combination as in stained glass windows. However it is relatively safe to have in the home.

Fred, could the substance with in the shade, rather than glass, Be Mica?

I was just wondering.

Respectfully,

Ralph Jones

Can you possibly post an image of the underside of the shade. That might give us another clue to how it was made.

Can you tell if the shade is actually glass and not a hard plastic?

Ralph,

The temperatures required to slump the glass into the shade frame would easily exceed the melting temperature of the lead/zinc alloy used in standard stained glass.

I doubt if mica was used in the manufacture of the glass. I suspect it is just a controlled combination of colored glass to create a tortoise shell like color.

This is a picture of the underside of the lamp. I doubt it is hard plastic because when you tap it with a fingernail or other object, it resonates like glass (I have other glass light fixtures for comparison).

Thanks

Here is a closer view of the lamp from another angle. Perhaps this would help.

Thanks for posting these new images and now it makes sense that the bird is upside down in the first image you posted. I suspect this could also be a shade for a ceiling light. It is still extremely striking and I agree that it is no doubt glass. I have no clue as to manufacturer.

Thank you for sharing this with us and get back to us if you discover anything new about your shade.

What a beautiful piece. It has been very carefully thought out. I see a Dragonfly and Spade in the shade along with the Cranes. I suppose it could be mounted either way, Cranes up or Dragonflies up.

Thanks for sharing.

Lauren