Tiffany Studios
"Why are there cracks in my Tiffany Lamp?"
In this edition of our YouTube video series "Tiffany Tricks," gallery owner and Tiffany expert Arlie Sulka explains why it is perfectly normal - and sometimes preferable! - to see cracks in an original Tiffany lamp.
Each piece of glass in a Tiffany Lamp shade was individually selected and cut by hand from a larger sheet of flat glass to match a numbered template; each lamp shade pattern produced by Tiffany Studios had its own wooden block and numbered pattern. If chosen carefully, a single piece of glass could bring together a number of elements in a composition, bringing a floral design to life or enlivening a geometric pattern.
The colors, textures, opacity and striations in the glass used by Tiffany cannot be exactly replicated today. Thus, it is important to maintain the integrity of each piece of original glass in a shade - even if it has a crack!
Want to learn more about how templates were used to make Tiffany Lamps?
Learn more from our friends at The Neustadt Collection:
MAKING A TIFFANY LAMP