Introduction:  Drip glazes are some of the most commonly found glazes.  Some of the names are taken directly from sales sheet.  The first four listed were used heavily during the early years of production.  Hence, they are found on the earlier Standard and Imperial Lines pieces.  If you look at your collections you will see these four glazes (in addition to the 3 common lustre glazes) are quite prominent.  Drip glazes usually consist of a primary glaze and the secondary drip glaze.  We will also cover two glazes that were developed and used on the Gonder Original line. 

During an interview with a former employee, I was told the drip glaze was applied with a sprayer and would appear clear during the application.  It was not until after the firing that the results would be seen.  The employee relayed a story where the wrong drip glaze was applied to a custom order of lamps, but it was not discovered until the next morning after the pieces had been fired - causing a frenzied work session on a Sunday afternoon in order to meet the Monday deadline.   

Pieces will vary in appearance depending on the amount of drip glaze used.  The drip may appear very light on some pieces and particularly heavy on others.  This has added some confusion in previous glaze discussions.  The amount of drip glaze applied would vary between workers, and there is no evidence that a light or heavy application of the drip glaze was intended to represent a new glaze.

When determining the color of the primary glaze, it is helpful to turn the piece over and view the bottom or look at the interior of the piece.  The primary glaze will nearly always be the color seen on the bottom and the interior.  The secondary drip glaze was not applied to the bottoms or interiors.  For example, if you are having problems determining if the glaze is Yellow with Brown Drip or Chartreuse with Brown Drip, check the bottom (or interior) to see if the bottom color is yellow or chartreuse.  When buying pieces on line, the color is often difficult to determine as photo quality varies.  Photos of the bottom have helped me identify the correct glaze.


Antique Gold #40 - collectors call this glaze Dijon in reference to its dark mustard color.  This glaze is often noted as green since it can have a greenish tint.  The 1943-44 catalogs in the new RumRill book note the release of this glaze.  It is touted as having a rich reddish brown background.  About half of my examples in this glaze have the reddish brown glaze on the bottom.  The drip glaze is yellow which gives pieces their Antique Gold appearance.  The yellow is often easily seen in areas where it was allowed to pool.  Used with pink interior.  

• Standard - commonly found on all pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - commonly found on all pieces in this line. 
• Original - rarely found.
• Ceramic Arts, Lamp Bases - not generally found on these lines.

 

Ebony Green #28 - collectors call this glaze Sea Swirl.  While ebony generally denotes black in color, this glaze is sage or seafoam green with brown drip.  Used with pink interior.  One of the most popular glazes as evidenced by its availability today.  I have also seen pieces that do not have a pink but rather green interior and I suspect these were produced near the final production years.  

• Standard - commonly found on all pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - commonly found on all pieces in this line. 
• Original - rarely found.
• Ceramic Arts, Lamp Bases - not generally found on these lines.

 

Royal Purple #29 - collectors call this glaze French Lilac.  The primary glaze is lilac blue/violet.  The drip glaze is brown.  These pieces vary greatly depending on the amount of brown drip that was applied.  Used with pink interior. 

*Note these same two colors were also used in reverse order in a later developed glaze.  The change in ordering produced a strikingly different and rarely seen glaze.  That glaze is often mistakenly called Royal Purple.  Due to the rarity of this later glaze, we know that the more commonly found French Lilac pieces are indeed Royal Purple.

• Standard - commonly found on all pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - commonly found on all pieces in this line. 
• Original - rarely found.
• Ceramic Arts, Lamp Bases - not generally found on these lines.

 
Wine Brown #30 - collectors call this (you guessed it) Wine Brown.  The primary glaze is white.  The drip glaze is brown.  I will admit this is not one of my favorite glazes so I have few examples.  

• Standard - commonly found on all pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - commonly found on all pieces in this line. 
• Original - rarely found.
• Ceramic Arts, Lamp Bases - not generally found on these lines.

 

Victorian Wine with Chartreuse Drip - collectors call this Red Flambé and it is believed this was the name used by Gonder, although that has not been found in any documentation that I'm aware of.  Flambé comes from the French and means flamed.  Attached to this glaze as a reference to its often flame like appearance.  One of my favorite glazes, Red Flambé is Victorian Wine with Chartreuse Drip.   The bottom and interiors are always Victorian Wine.  On occasion you will find a pool of chartreuse around the bottom or perhaps spilling onto the foot ring.  Pieces vary greatly in appearance depending on the amount of chartreuse drip used.  Collectors sometimes shy away from pieces showing too much green.  I seldom shy away from any Red Flambé piece.  A favorite with many collectors, this glaze will often double the price of the piece.  Produced for items in the Original line, the glaze was also used on some of the more popular items from the Standard and Imperial lines - often noted with a new mold number.   

• Standard - found on some pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - found on some pieces in this line. 
• Original - commonly found on all pieces in this line.
• Ceramic Arts - extremely rare on items from this line.
• Lamp Bases - not generally found on this line.  A lighter variation of this was used on lamps and which Bradley called Rosewood.

 
 
Chartreuse with Brown Drip - collectors call this Pistachio.  Also noted as Pistachio in many Bradley catalog pages.  Perhaps Gonder used the same name for it, but no documentation exists to confirm this.  Used with Chartreuse interior, pieces will vary greatly in appearance depending on the amount of brown drip applied.  I have some examples that are almost spotted in appearance.  However there is no indication that this was a change in glaze colors or techniques, so I refer to all these pieces as Pistachio.  Very popular colors during the production years.

• Standard - rarely found on pieces in the E, H, J, K, L and M series.
• Imperial - rarely found on pieces in this line. 
• Original - commonly found on all pieces in this line.
• Ceramic Arts - not generally used on this line.
• Lamp Bases - commonly found on many pieces in this line.