Blown three-mold glass, as its name implies, was made by a process in which molten glass was introduced into a three-part mold that imparted its distinctive pattern to the glass. The glass-blower then inflated the molded gather of glass to the desired shape and size. The design of the present example was an attempt to emulate the faceted surfaces of more expensive Anglo-Irish style cut glass. The size and shape of this bowl suggest that it was intended to function as a punch bowl, yet there is no contemporary mention of molded punch bowls in either advertisements or glass house lists, a fact that suggests that this was not a common form.

Related examples: Two similar punch bowls with a different pattern are at Winterthur (Palmer 1993, p. 184, no. 147, who also cites the absence of contemporary reference to the form).

Book excerpt: David B. Warren, Michael K. Brown, Elizabeth Ann Coleman, and Emily Ballew Neff. American Decorative Arts and Paintings in the Bayou Bend Collection. Houston: Princeton Univ. Press, 1998.