This beautiful vintage Bohemian art glass pedestal bowl features a graceful coupe-shaped design and a colorful spatter glass finish. Etched on the base is "Tienda San Juan" ("San Juan Store"), showing it was originally made for export to the Americas during the golden age of Bohemian glassmaking.
This is a wonderful example of end-of-day spatter glass, created by using leftover pieces of colored glass at the end of a workshop shift. Glassmakers rolled molten glass over colorful chips (called frit) before shaping each piece, creating a unique mottled pattern. Because no two pieces were made exactly alike, every end-of-day example is one of a kind and a small piece of glassmaking history. (This style is sometimes mistakenly called "splatter glass.")
Date: c. Circa 1918-1936 (1930s)
Period: Art Deco
Country of Origin: Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) For the Argentine/South American Export Market
Attribution: Steinwald, Ernst Steinwald & Co.
Marks/Signatures/Label: Tienda San Juan
Size Classification: Small, Cabinet Size
Dimensions: 5.3 inches tall (13.5 cm)
Weight: 14 oz.
Materials: Art Glass
Technique: Spatter Glass
Features: Spatter, "End of Day" Glass
Colors: Purple, Red, Orange, Yellow, White
Pattern: Abstract
Style: Art Deco / Bohemian Art Glass
Condition: Excellent. Original, unaltered antique condition.
Historical context and expert insights suggest this is Bohemian glass, likely produced by the renowned Czech glassworks Ernst Steinwald & Co. around the 1930s. The piece may have been specially crafted for the Tienda San Juan store, a longstanding retailer established over 80 years ago in Salta, Argentina, possibly as a private label or export item for the Latin American market.
Collectors of Czech glass will appreciate the distinctive style and craftsmanship typical of the pre-World War II Bohemian glass period (1918–1938). This piece is part of a unique heritage, blending European artistry with South American commercial heritage.
