Cupid and Psyche: An Important Thomas Webb & Sons Cameo Two-Handled Vase by George Woodall, Circa 1889

Philip Budrose Collection, Marblehead, Massachusetts (by 1956);

Ray and Lee Grover Collection (by 1980)

Geoffrey W. Beard, Nineteenth Century Cameo Glass, Monmouthshire 1956, pp. 124-25, pl. XV, no. 55

Ray and Lee Grover, English Cameo Glass, New York 1980, pp. 58, 114, 300, figs. 123, C298

Christopher Woodall Perry, The Cameo Glass of Thomas and George Woodall, Somerset 2000, pp. 101, 140

Paris, Exposition Universelle, 1889.

This magnificent vase, remarkable for its quality of carving, is of a form and scale rarely seen on the auction market. It was included in the 1889 Exposition Universelle, where Webb & Sons received a Grand Prix. The company was a frequent exhibitor on this international stage, where they were hailed as "the best makers of Crystal Glass in England, and consequently in the world."

According to Christopher Woodall Perry, p. 31, George Woodall completed the present vase sometime shortly after July 30th 1888, as well as a second vase of this form titled The Fruit Seller (W2403). The piece entered the Thomas Webb and Sons price book, as 'W2609' 15 1/2 two-handled white on brown vase. The piece cost £25 to complete with a sale price of £65, then £55. George Woodall himself photographed the present vase alongside The Fruit Seller vase, and his image is reproduced from the original glass-plate negative by R. and L. Grover, op. cit., p. 114, fig. 123, who also reproduce the price book entry and the Webb pattern book drawing for the vase, pp. 187, 309.

A third vase of this form, titled The Rose, circa 1895 signed G. Woodall, is illustrated by Beard, op. cit., pl. XV, no. 56, where the author notes that two versions were recorded. The example illustrated was in the Thomas Webb and Sons Collection, Stourbridge, and a second was in the Budrose Collection. A fourth vase, titled Industry, signed Geo. Woodall, is illustrated in R. and L. Grover, op. cit., p. 110, fig. 109, now in the Bill and Irma Runyon Art Collection, Texas A&M Foundation, id. no. 988.001.0078.

Born in a lineage of glassmakers, Thomas Wilkes Webb founded Thomas Webb & Sons in 1837, introducing quality engraved crystal and colored glass to the market. His contributions to the medium earned him the title of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, while the company became known as “The Crystal King of England.” The company flourished even further under the control of his three sons, Thomas, Charles and Walter, who succeeded as directors upon their father’s death in 1869. The Webb brothers improved working conditions for craftsmen and encouraged their creativity. They hired many artisans, including George and Thomas Woodall as well as company art director James O’Fallon, who were responsible for the majority of new cameo glass designs. George and Thomas Woodall are particularly well-regarded for their contributions to Thomas Webb & Sons’ cameo glass production. Thomas Woodall was proficient at designing decorative borders and floral motifs. Meanwhile George Woodall had a skill for figural engravings and often sought inspiration from classical subjects. In combination, the talents of the Woodalls generated elegant glassworks with ornate depictions in varying gradations of white glass that would define the peak of the company’s production.

The company impressed its finest and most valuable works GEM CAMEO, referring back to the Romans’ original intent of imitating engraved semi-precious gemstones.