One of the great Loetz mysteries is the decor name for the Loetz “Heart’ vase. While not a rare decor, it is still highly sought after by collectors because of its beauty as well as an appreciation for the technical difficulty required to create this decor. Several examples of this decor are known to exist so it must have been a popular and treasured piece of art glass when it was originally introduced which was assumed to be c1901-1902, a time period when many of the Loetz archives were lost. Still it seems sad to keep calling these beautiful examples, “PG Unknown”, which is why the Loetz Advisory Group continues its research and is always on the hunt for examples that might one day match a shape that could lead to the discovery of a new decor.
Recently at auction, a Loetz "heart" vase was offered in a shape and size that had been flagged as representative of a "hyacinth PG 3/492" production. That shape was PN II-1036. While several shapes that included production notes for both rosa and hyacinth PG 3/492 had also been flagged, matching at least two photographic examples of the same decor to shapes that also specifically list that decor name in the production notes can be difficult but this is the criteria that the Loetz Advisory Group has set for documenting any new decor. Always hopeful, a search of the photos stored in our photo library of Loetz heart vases began to see if a match of other examples could help document these as belonging to the decor category known as “PG 3/492”.
Then,voilà, three additional photographic examples of heart vases were matched to production numbers that included the correct size, color and shape for each example along with the mention of "hyacinth PG 3/492" in the production notes. Interestingly, we also learned that this decor was first introduced in 1903. The four documented examples of "PG 3/492" are shown below and all of the photographic examples of this decor in our library have now been uploaded on Loetz.com. Enjoy!
(It must be noted that without access to the indispensable book, “Loetz Series II Paper Patterns for Glass from 1900 to 1914”, by Jitka Lnenickova, years of work saving photographic examples of Loetz and the willingness to share those examples and continue our research to connect these clues, many of these Loetz mysteries would remain hidden for another 115 years)
