the unknown color

So, if I’m a Wexpert (thank you, Laurel), it is only because there is no actual expert available. The entirety of my knowledge comes from one second edition book, internet searches (which only yield resale listings), and direct observation of thrift store shelves and our personal display cases.

Last week, I took a slow stroll through an Etsy Wexford search. There I find a treasure wholly unknown previously. So forgotten that I don’t even know what Anchor Hocking called the color, but it is glorious!

The fives pages of Anchor Hocking’s Fire-King & More, 2nd Edition that are dedicated to Wexford offers the following:

“The flashed Ruby (never called Royal Ruby) votive candle… is one of five colors mades besides crystal. The others are Green, Blue, Cranberry, and Amber. Pewter Mist is the gray color appearing on the top of page 123.”

That’s a total of six colors plus Crystal. I suspect “five” refers specifically to the colors released for the votive holder specific.

From the internet, the Green votive is significantly darker than the Green 7-piece (lidded sugar bowl, creamer, lidded butter dish, and shaker) set produced toward the end of production.

There are two different blues: cobalt and a sky blue. The former is only found on the cake stand, votive, and the imitation Wexford shakers. The latter I’ve only seen on the lidded candy dish, and the simpler salad/dip bowl.

Cranberry seems exclusively applied as a band of color on the lip. According to the book, also on the votive, but I’ve only found it on glassware and sorbet cups.

The gorgeous pink is found on the lidded candy dish and hexagontal footed salad plate.

This set was described by an “amber ombre” but I found two amber cordial goblet once (but I wasn’t “collecting color” then *ugh*) and the Fire-King book shows the amber votive. This is not amber. Amber flash is darker, “dirtier”, and applied as a solid color.

Now. Pewter Mist is different. It was produced on a significant number of pieces, and it has an iridescence.

I see this set as a “mist”, although I’m at a loss for a color name. I’m using amber mist for now. The only other image of this color is hosted on Worthpoint, a pay cite with a cached history of online auction prices and photos. It was the lid from the butter dish.

Finally, unlike any other Wexford that I own or have seen, these goblets have thin gold bands on either side of the small diamond band. The gold (Wexford gold banding is 24k) on this set is flaking off or rubbed away, but I am reminded that this was the only listing of this color on the entirety of the internet. I ain’t mad at rubbed-off gold…