Steph

thanks

Awesome box, Dan. In case anyone missed the name on it (and to put it into searchable text form!), the label includes the lines: ASSORTED STRIPED ONYX "AKRO AGATE" TOY MARBLES (I love that they feel they have to make it clear the marbles are toys!) I guess Akro used the name "onyx" for the corks because it was a naturally descriptive adjective, not to steal a common marble name and make it their own brand name. No way of knowing for sure, I s'pose. The gist of what I'm hearing about the term onyx in connection with slags boils down to this: in the 1910's through 1930's if an American schoolkid was shown a slag, and asked what kind of marble it was, he'd say it was an onyx. does that sound about right?

Fun. don't suppose there are any identifying marks? mfg, pat., anything?

These are comments found in Bob's recent white slag thread. Please elaborate on the appropriate usage of the term "onyx" in connection with slags. (I understand it is also the name of an Akro corkscrew.) Okay ... when I went to double check on the usage of "onyx" in connection with corks, I stumbled onto a partial answer to my question. In addition to confirmation that Onyx was an official corkscrew name, the Akro page at Marblealan.com says this about slags: (i.e., except in a couple of special cases, Akro Agate slags would have been known as onyxes in their day?) Next on the MFC page I found this: And on the Peltier page: The other reference I find to "onyx" at MarbleAlan.com is on the non-glass handmade marbles page: (so the white bands on the natural onyx marble are the inspiration for the name "onyx" in connection with slags?) Now, when I thought I almost had it figured out, I'm not finding any reference to "onyx" on Marblelan's CAC page. What did Christensen call their slags? Is it known/believed that with a few exceptions such as the Cardinal Reds noted above, the common name for all slags in the early 1900's would have been "onyx"? If so, was the name supplanted in the minds of the populace by Akro's usage of it in connection with their corkscrews? Or is it your feeling that the shift occurred later? Thank you very much! Steph

Are the box and dividers original? (as far as you know?)

and all 11/16" or thereabouts? ooh. what a nice set!

You think they were all made at/near the same time? The first mib you showed, is that the 5th one down in the 3rd column in the box? That buttcrack makes it the oddball of the bunch. If they were made at/near the same time, that says interesting things about the variability of a machine's output.

My guess: no description & diagram

*wolf whistle*

Dates on the Gladding-Vitro era? Found it. Marblealan.com says 1969 - 1982.

row 1 row 2 row 3 row 4 (i presume ) Thanks! that's cool, even if it's not pontils! I'm thinking pontils aren't so much of a slag issue. Is that right? No, that's not right, is it. Transitionals can be slags, can't they. and we need to recognize pontils there?

I gather this compilation pic is an assortment of typical seams and nines and such to be looked for on slags. brad, did you have a different pic in mind to illustrate pontils?

Any special names for that red shade on the right, RD?

wow. I just went back and reviewed the entire CA cullet thread, and saw bunches of pix. Skads, even. Why did I not feel I knew what an exotic looked like? I guess it was because the pix were labeled with things like "here's some more new ones" and "I'll post my lousy pic", not "hey doofus ... this picture I'm about to show is a CAC exotic". I wasn't sure what I was seeing, and so I didn't remember ever seeing a confirmed exotic. (and Bocci, you know I paid lots of attention to what I was reading ... all six pages of it) swiss cheese memory, there. I'm still glad I asked here about what they look like because seeing all of the shamrocks has been schweet. thanks to everyone for sharing the pix, and esp. John of course for making it all possible Steph

Thanks everyone. And here's one more pic from a current ebay auction.

Velly, velly intellesting. Now I'll have something new to consider when a marble looks like Jabo or Vitro or Champion or even Akro and I don't recognize the colors. I'm seeing conflicting statements about dates of operation in google results. Also I didn't find much about when, where or how Mid-Atlantic marbles were distributed. But I saw that they were made for "Tiara Exclusives", a company started in 1970.

Very cool.

Well, that's very cool. As well as something vital a vintage mib-buyer should know about. Not saying it wouldn't be worth what I paid for it if I was in the market, but it's still good to be warned that if someone tries to sell me an exotic CAC with interesting gold furnace bits as a bonus feature .....

Something to think about for catching sparkle!

Anyone have info/pix on Mid Atlantic marbles they'd care to share?

At least part of it! With so few if any actual Exotic owners posting pix of the mibs, I was just hoping to get a feel for what they looked like. At least a sense of if the mibs are dazzling in their own right ... or if it is mainly the possibility of owning rare, recently discovered, minimally circulated CAC's which is the dazzling part? (P.s., thank you Brad for pointing out that example.)

So, naturally I've been curious about what exotics look like ever since I first read about them. I've not been lucky with finding photos though. It sounds like you're saying some of Mr. McCormick's could give me a fair idea?

I knew that, sue. LOL Well, at least the part about them being contemporary. I was guessing Buddy had made them actually! And that slag. Wow. All I can say is good thing it's signed. It looks like the real deal.

Really hard. Do you have these bags?

I know that pink n green has gotta be pricey. Can't even think about that. Whaddaya think that slickery mint pelt slag would be worth on today's market? What kind of moon(ie) is that big 'un?