hdesousa

Is your box in post #5 legit?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Akro-Agate-Boxed-Marble-set-Large-100-Marble-Box-/201343209023

Here's one. Not mine and I've not seen it before. Sold on eBay several weeks ago: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-VINTAGE-AKRO-AGATE-MARBLE-BOX-Akro-Agate-Box-Sleeve-Pre-1927-/201345280584

I too am an old man and I hate computers as well. A genuine box missing an insert is not a real big deal. But if I had a fake box that I thought valuable, and a friend who suspects that it could be fake but does not tell me, I would hope that person would stop calling me their friend. Where did he get his box?

There is a good chance your friend's box is fake. You can blame it on Hardy's book or you can tell us where he got his box from or you can believe ignorance is bliss and not "have the heart to tell him that."

crystalspheres:"A collector friend has this same box and it looks just like the one in the book also." Did your friend recently buy their box off eBay?

Neither Hardy's box nor the box in post #1 are fakes. Where did your friend get their box from?

It looks like one of these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-GERMAN-SINGLE-FACETED-PONTIL-LEIGHTON-TRANSITIONAL-MARBLE-AQUA-w-EGG-YOLK/381277320839

Anyone seen one before? I've seen them with swirls and micas, but not with this type of marble. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-J-B-Williams-1858-Patent-BOTTLE-STOPPER-with-MARBLE-Vintage-NR-/131518120262

Steph, on 02 Jun 2015 - 09:55 AM, said: Good research on the repro firecracker boxes! Not so easy to do as you say, when one has a passion for the collectable, especially when you think you're getting a good deal and you're having a bad gut day. A few additional common aphorisms you could add to your list: Never give a sucker an even break. If it's too good to be true, it probably isn't. There's a sucker born every minute. Believe nothing, trust no one. (especially if you have more dollars than sense). And on eBay, be especially careful when you see "private listing -- bidders' identities protected".

I was planning to bid on the box, never having seen one before. After the seller pulled the auction, presumably in reaction to this thread, I contacted him about buying the box. Part of his response: "after talking to the guy at the Boy Scout museum in Irving, Texas for an hour on Sat., I learned that indeed a marble premium was given out to all participants of the 1937 Boy Scout Jamboree. They have one on display at the museum. It was indeed called the "Silver Jubilee" and it was the 1st ever Boy Scout Jamboree. After taking this all in and careful consideration and conversation with a Scout volunteer, I have decided to donate this box to the Boy Scout museum. The Boy Scouts were a wonderful part of my life growing up and I am sure they will appreciate it regardless. Regards, JD "

Here's one that's almost certainly remelted, with an engraved (recessed) pontil. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Handmade-Large-German-Onionskin-Marble-2-053-Mint-/111673704390

I too had trouble finding where to leave feedback. Click on "purchase history" on the left column of the "my eBay page" and the "leave feedback" buttons come up.

Yes, those bubbles. Is that a sign of having been remelted?

What do you make of the horizontal row of fine bubbles at 7 o'clock, near the surface,about 2/3 the way from the center to the periphery?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Large-German-Onionskin-Marble-2-25in-Unbelievable-Condition-and-Color-Must-See-/381252606741

This from George Hoy, a collector in Western Ontario, where many of these marbles are found: "The one on the left is MFC, the middle two are?, the one on the right is a brick. They are all made by the exact same process with the same 9 figuring and same pontil."

Winnie, that is good information. Perhaps the "Canadian type" marbles were made in Europe. For some reason, some of the later hand-made German glass marbles are found in Canada and not so much in the USA, such as large Lutz's. Perhaps these "Canadian" marbles took the same route to Canada. So now it's your job to find out where in Europe they were made. :-)

I agree with Bob (Metalshelf), that these marbles are similar in construction to the "Canadian marbles". I asked Roger Browse about similar 'Canadian" pontil marbles. He describes them as "“canadian”: [crease] long thin cutoff with only tiny amounts of spidering along the line. Sometimes cutoff is very faint, some even completely smoothed over. Smooth striping that looks a lot like MFC. Sharp back-and-forth action on the tail emerging from the cutoff. Basic colours + transparent yellow, transparent red + opaque yellow on white + enormous variation of 2-colour. sizes 9/16”, 11/16”, 7/8”." and says this about them: "They are largely found in Canada, and for the basic colours, quite easy to find. It is well known that the area of Ontario north of Ohio had several German immigrant glass working communities. The schools were in German etc. Kitchener was Berlin before the 1st world war. I have contacted the people who have dug the glasswork sites in Ontario and eastern Manitoba, and I have been told there was no sign of marbles. I suspect that a cottage industry was set up during the times that the glassworks were being rebuilt after fires, which happened several times at these sites. If you could see a map with a push pin at each location where I have found “crease-pontils”, the concentration in that area north of Ohio would be obvious." I have asked several Canadian marble collectors who live in South Western Ontario, and none know of any glass factory that made marbles. So it's doubtful they were made in Canada. One thing that could be done is to look for documentation in toy catalogs, newspapers and government archives to see if/when and from where Canadian marbles were imported. Winnie, I think the marbles you played with are the ones you mention and pictured here, in post #7 and #12? http://marbleconnection.com/topic/18714-odd-akros/ They are different from the ones pictured in the first post. This is what Roger Browse says about your European marbles: "“european”: straight indented cutoff, often with teardrop-like crease towards the ends. One variation is when the cutoff is very short it is called a “pin-pontil”. Early on the lines are shorter, later they become fairly long. Some were not smoothed over properly, and appear as “regular” pontils. Sometimes the line can be seen within the “regular” pontil. I have 3 of the 100 count boxes with “line pontils” and the occasional “pin”, and the occasional “regular” pontil in the same row. Always quality glass, but becoming more sloppy construction toward the end. smooth striping. Tail emerges circularly from the cutoff ( like a scythe), and tail will often interact with the cutoff, as if drawn in (other types do not interact). Basic colours + oddball transparents (magenta, yellow, clear, slate). sizes 9/16”, 11/16”, then inconsistent up to 1.5”." And so as not to confuse them with Japanese marbles, this is how Roger describes the Japanese marbles: “japanese”: [pinch] curved spidery cutoff, usually low quality glass, wobbly striping, little or no tail emerging at the cutoff. Basic colours (aqua, green, blue, amber, purple, red/white) + opaques on white (blue, green, aqua, yellow). sizes 9/16” (not many opaque), 11/16”, 15/16” (only opaque ones), 1.125”." But adding to the confusion, these "Japanese" marbles are sometimes found in the same box with "European" marbles. This is what Roger says: "The Japanese ones, and the later European ones appear to have been marketed out of the UK, by companies like CODEG, etc. The earlier European (more likely to be “pin” or “regular”) may have come out of Germany. At some point apparently a couple of immigrants from Eastern Europe (Germany?) constructed marble making equipment in the Netherlands (Veligglas). I suspect the productions in the Netherlands and in Japan were largely an outsource operation. Many of the boxes with pinch-pontils are marked “made in japan”. The “line-pontils” are most common on solitaire boards (red box), but sometimes they are pinch, but never mixed. My 100 boxes have 4 colours of transparent “line-pontil”, and 1 colour of (slightly smaller) “pinch-pontils”, and I have seen 3 others like that too. I have seen a few instances of a box of 1.125” transparent “pinch-pontils” with one early 1.125” opaque imperial! The “canadian” “crease pontils” appear to be independent of the UK connection." All somewhat confusing and perhaps tainted with conjecture, but there's no reason we can't get to the bottom of it.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/201333107065

Not mine. http://www.ebay.com/itm/DIVIDED-CORE-Swirl-Pink-17-32-Mint-/111641917088

DB, Did you know the H.H. Tammen Co., a novelty store in Denver, CO, imported German agates way back when? http://www.minrec.org/labels.asp?colid=546 https://books.google.com/books?id=Sv1DAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA556&lpg=PA556&dq=hh+tammen+agate&source=bl&ots=Ghj8Kk3YZc&sig=0OcW26wvKuFMhYtycGuQzx8ftw0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=bi8hVcf4FomdsAXivIGwAw&ved=0CEEQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=hh%20tammen%20agate&f=false

DB, Since you live in Colorado, what do you think is meant here by "Colorado Agate"? http://www.ebay.com/itm/APR-10-1926-NEWSPAPER-PAGE-1349-FREE-MIGS-AND-GENUINE-PUREY-AGATE-MARBLES-/261838662713

John, Does this same effect not occur when you make two snips (a nip and a cut) off the molten glass at the end of your rod as the glob drops into your machine? Hansel

Chris, Any truth to the rumor that as you aged, you could no longer duplicate a road and tunnel slag? Hansel