Imperial’s Pattern No. 489 or The Battle of Imperial’s Open Rose vs. Lustre Rose 

By Rick and Debbie Graham

Imperial’s Rose pattern has been known by collectors as Open Rose (collar base), and Lustre Rose (footed) as if they were two separate patterns. In reality, both were marketed by the Imperial Glass Company of Bellaire, OH. as pattern #489. Water sets and table sets are usually called Lustre Rose even though the items in those sets are collar based and not footed. A vast number of shapes and colors were produced in this pattern with production dates of 1912-1929. It is not surprising to see examples of #489 almost every time you go out carnival glass hunting.

One of the things we enjoy about collecting is finding common patterns, such as Imperial’s Rose pattern, with uncommon beauty. We have always gravitated toward wonderfully iridized items in purple by Imperial. Iridescence will run from butt-ugly to strikingly beautiful. Debbie has long had a fondness for Imperial’s amber glass with show-stopping iridescence. I’ll have to admit that she has a good eye for pretty glass. The first item of #489 we bought was a marigold 9 1/2” plate as a gift for my mom. It was $30 and she loved it. Since that time, we have purchased two more marigold plates, one for $15 and one for $6.50, and each was prettier than the one before. Those prices show you that everyone can own pretty glass even if it is not a rarity. The many reproduction/re-issues of Imperial Glass patterns over the years have caused many dealers and collectors to be leery of buying Imperial items old or new. That has enabled us over the years to get some really good deals on some very nice glass.

Now to the other end of the spectrum. On June 27, 2008, we attended the auction of the American Carnival Glass Association in Fairborn, OH. of the Rodney and Brenda Jacks collection. The Jacks have a great eye for color and there were many items in that auction that grabbed our attention. Debbie’s top pick was a purple 9 1/2” Imperial Grape plate with superior iridescence. A 9 1/2” purple #489 plate with unusual and distinctive iridescence was my top target. After making our “desires” list we had our normal strategy meeting to set some bidding limits. As the auction progressed, we discovered we fell far short on the Imperial Grape plate as it soared past our limit. Then we moved down the list until the purple Imperial Rose plate was up for bid and we were surprised to be able to add it to our collection. Every time we look at that plate a flood of good memories from that Remmen auction come to mind and we enjoy the beauty of that piece every day.

On the left is the purple Imperial Rose plate from the Jacks’ collection. The Grahams are quite proud of this amber Imperial Rose plate, on the righr.

A few observations we have discovered since obtaining that #489 purple plate. I am a packrat and we have saved all of the auction brochures since we began collecting carnival glass as reference material. On looking back I found where this same plate sold 9-18-1999 at the NECGA for $1950., then again on 2-3-2001 at Sunshine State for $1600. The plate has distinctive iridescent characteristics that pinpoint it in the brochures where pictured. It is possible it has sold other times but was not featured in a photo or before we began collecting. It was also the representative photo for #489 in the last Standard Encyclopedia of Carnival Glass 12th Edition, under the listing for Open Rose (Imperial). We also added a nice amber example from a Wroda auction that is pretty and didn’t break the bank.

Above you see the amber rosebowl on the left and purple rosebowl on the right showing off their beauty.

Two other pieces we really enjoy are the amber and purple rosebowls. The amber one came first from a nice carnival glass auction years ago. We think it is far prettier than most amber examples you see, and the price reflected that notion. Still the price was very reasonable to us. At the 2016 HOACGA Auction we were able to corral a pretty purple rosebowl out of the Galen and Kathi Johnson collection. It is very easy on the eyes, Galen said that early in their carnival glass collecting journey he was in California perusing an antique mall when he saw an older lady stocking her case with several pieces of carnival glass. She told Galen that the purple piece was a very rare Northwood Rose Show rosebowl! Galen made a deal for the piece and the rest is history.

These two rose bowls show the inside and outside of the beautiful rosebowls.

These are just a few pieces of #489 and we are sure that there are many more excellent pieces yet to be discovered. Good luck finding carnival glass treasures!

Photos courtesy of Rick and Debbie Graham.

This article first appeared in the ICGA Pump in the March 2023 issue and is reprinted with permission.