vase

After Thomas Hawkes died in 1913, his business was operated by his only son, Samuel. Samuel Hawkes, who had joined the firm about 1895, was trained as a businessman and not as a glass cutter. Nevertheless, he became a skillful designer, as this vase with an engraved spider web attests. Hawkes’ customers included leading jewelers all over North America, and this piece was made for a traveling exhibition circulated by the Hawkes firm to jewelry stores in 1940 and 1941. It is probably the only example produced in this design. The vase features a silver base. The Silver Department of the Hawkes company created a number of sterling mounts, mostly on “rock crystal engraved” wares. Some of the objects displayed in the jewelry store exhibition were sold at that time, others were donated to a Florida museum, and the remaining pieces - including this vase - were sold from the showroom of Hawkes’ Corning store.