Alan

They are real. Really new.

Finding 9, one inch micas in that color and minty condition will take much longer than most folks probably imagine. Assuming cost-containment is a factor since you would re-sell them - much tougher still.

I wish I had seen it when you had the PPP up. Is it mint? I've been looking for some.

It was loading a plain blank page (white) for me earlier - no errors displayed. It went back to normal 15 minutes after that.

Bruce: Thanks for that list. It looks like you have a great group.

Do you have a list of artists that will be there?

How about a (somewhat) backlit photo showing the transparency. Right now I'm leaning more towards European.

Full-size Salesman's Sample Case.

Nice pieces. I have collected cullet for years and enjoy the story it tells about glass used by the individual manufacturers.

I would put in a clear glass of water to be able to see the construction better. Fill the water just over the top of the marble.

That is just an odd light reflection in the smooth concave shape.

I have seen Mark's tool for air traps - but don't know what he considers a trade secret. I think the fine nuances of the tool(s) he uses ARE unique to Mark. I had a one-hour conversation with him n just this subject and how he fine-tuned the tool and technique to achieve the level of perfection that Mark expects. He goes through quite a refinement process to get a piece that he is willing to put his name on. Some of his designs like the Comedy and Tragedy theater mask air traps are very problematic to create. Geoff Beetem makes some quite different air traps that are very nice as well.

RSC is correct. In machine-mades - bubbled glass is over-heated glass. Glass heats and cools much slower than air. That does not mean that the glass will have unhealed stress in it. Some contemporary makers create pieces with large air inclusions in them:

Bert Cohen has several on his website.

Yes, they do.

A "check" in glass terms is a fracture.

Strangely - I am reminded of a refrigerator repairman....but I don't know why.

An Akro oxblood patch on clear and green with furnace brick:

They are generally considered refuse and were discarded at the factory.

Hard to judge without seeing them in person - but the ones pictured are not similar to vintage EOD marbles.

I see spots, some twisting, red and depth in the marble - so that would make it a Submarine Guinea Cyclone Oxblood Flame. Are those sparkly reflections Lutz AND aventurine?

I don't know that there is any specific point here - other than noting that color frit on onionskins is pulled to thread shapes as they are necked down from the cane with a pair of jacks. This is pretty universal due to how cane marbles are made with frit - and that the pontils have a clear window into the marble. Any viscous material will pull to a point - and hot glass is no exception.