Strömbergshyttan 6.25" Blue Glass Vase, Swedish Provincial Flower of Östergötland

This beautiful vintage vase depicts the provincial flower of Östergötland, Sweden, the Blåflaska (Bluebottle). The 6.25" high and 3.75" wide, square, tapered vase is a perfect size for display on a sunny windowsill or shelf, and it's quite heavy, weighing 3.75 pounds. It is in excellent condition, clear and sparkling. This piece is engraved using a hand-held engraving tool, sort of like a dental drill. The shiny spots, like the leaf, were chipped away with a small chisel or screwdriver. I am connected through Facebook to a gentleman who used to do this work, and he would go home with tiny nicks on his forearms from flying glass bits. It looks really cool, but that's a pretty high price to pay!

Here are some interesting things about this flower, also known as Bachelor's Button or Cornflower. from an online search. The outstanding blue color is due to the presence of protocyanin. The plant has been used as chicory (a coffee substitute). A concoction of this flower has been used as an eye remedy or wash. It should not travel on an air balloon, as on arrival the basket may thud into the ground with a knock or bump. So, now you know. ;)

The story of Strömbergshyttan begins in 1876, when a glassworks called Lindfors ("winding falls") opened about 50 km west of Orrefors. In 1933, Edward Strömberg, who was a former head at Orrefors, and his wife Gerda, who was a designer at Eda, leased the company and changed the name to Strömbergshyttan ("Strömberg's hut"). Edward and his son Eric devised a way to produce a glass that had a bluish-silver hue, which became characteristic for Strömbergshyttan. Eric Strömberg and his wife, Asta, bought the company in 1945, and they invested heavily to modernize it. The Strömberg family further upgraded the mill in 1960. For most of the 40+ years that the family controlled the glass mill, Gerda and Asta Strömberg designed the glass. A fire in 1973 left the glassworks in financial difficulties, and it was sold to Orrefors in 1976. Orrefors closed the Strömbergshyttan glassworks just three years later. (Adapted from Nils Bergqvist)