Grapevine Lattice

By Dr. Larry Keig

Grapevine Lattice is an easily identified pattern made up entirely or largely of highly embossed interlocking gnarled vines. The crisscrossing creates the illusion of diamonds within divisions.

Pitchers and Tumblers

The pitcher is the preeminent item in the pattern. However, items in other shapes are highly desirable when the iridescence is of superior quality.

Pitchers. The seven and one-fourth inch lattice band on the tankard pitcher extends from the lowest level of the handle’s fold to about two and three-fourth inches from the vessel’s base. Above the latticework are two other bands. The band just above the lattice, separated by a narrow cord, resembles knotted tree bark. The one and one-fourth inch band at the top is unpatterned. The two and one-half inch band below the dominant design extends to near the protruding base. It is an indistinct pattern, apparently designed as filigree to fill space.

In all, the pitcher stands eleven and one-half inches tall. Its top diameter is four inches, four and three- fourth inches from tip of spout to its opposite side. The recessed base measures four and three-fourth inches from edge to edge. The underside of the base is pattern plain.

Pitchers, tumblers, and water sets are available in marigold, purple/ amethyst, cobalt, and white. While the base color of the amethyst, the commonest color, and blue, the hardest to find, are practically identical from example to example, the surface color and iridescence on these and the other colors, vary widely. Color is lush on some pitchers but light and washed out on others. On occasion, the surface color is different—good or bad–from one element of the pattern to another. Their handles—clear crystal on the marigold and white, purple and deep blue on the dark items—are non-iridized.

The spectacularly shimmering pitcher pictured sold at the 2018 ICGA convention auction. It had once been in, as Jim and Jan Seeck noted in the listing, Woody Funk’s fabled collection.

Tumblers

Tumblers are four inches tall. Their top diameters are three inches, give or take about a quarter of an inch in either direction. Their recessed bases range from two and one-fourth to two and three-eighth inches across.

Like pitchers, tumblers are available in marigold, amethyst/purple, cobalt blue, and white. The marigold and amethyst are easy to find. The white is harder to track down but available. The cobalt rarely surface. The quality of surface colors of the marigold, amethyst, and white vary widely. Iridescence on some is beautiful, on others borderline or worse. The surface color of the cobalt is often largely or partially a gun metal silver or a dull gold.

The standard tumbler has the grass around the bottom.

The variant tumbler lacks the grass.

Unlike pitchers, all of which are alike in design, tumblers come in two versions. The standard version has three pattern elements. The primary element is the lattice. The second is a narrow cord that demarcates the latticework from “switch grass” which fills the area between it and the base. An area at the top is un-patterned. The amethyst are occasionally found with souvenir lettering wrapped around this plain band. Most, maybe all, the marigold, amethyst, and white tumblers are the standard version. The illustrated slice of Neal Becker’s amethyst tumbler shows the lattice work, the cord, and the grass at the bottom.

The other version, a variant, is the same as the standard except that there is no grass beneath the cord. All blue tumblers appear to be the variant. Diane Highnam’s photo is of the “grassless” cobalt variant.

Water sets are available in all colors. It is difficult to find water sets in which the surface color of all items are well matched.

This article first appeared in the ICGA Pump in the September 2020 issue and is reprinted with permission.