The following information has been sent and posted with the permission of the owner of this glass. It came into her possession through the estate of her great aunt, Evelyn Irene Haffner nee Clemmer who decends from Jacob/Jasper "Casper" Klemmer branch of the Friedelsheim Klemmers. She would like to find information regarding the history and significance of this article. The owner may be contacted by email at; ViviaB@aol.com 
The owner states: "It's 3 3/4" high and 3" in diameter. The glass is in near-perfect condition, miraculously. The decorations: on one side is a lily of the valley plant in green and white, with red, white, and blue foliage-like decoration swirling away from the plant. Opposite side has a wreath with blue berries and four white flowers at the four "corners" of the round wreath. Inside the wreath are what appear to be blacksmith tools and/products: nails, horseshoe, hammer, tongs, and some others I can't identify. There is painted grass along the bottom between the two sides. "The writing, in old script, appears to be a German/Latin mixture. A German-born friend could not interpret it, and pronounced "this is not German." She was a German prof at the University of Washington, and although she is well over 90, I would expect her to understand middle or old German. This makes me wonder if perhaps this is one of the languages spoken in Switzerland. Or, it could simply be that the variable spelling used back then makes it hard to understand.  "The writing appears to me to read:
 "I am fluent in several Germanic languages and know some German. I think it says something like 'LONG LIVE THE USEFUL HAND OF THE BLACKSMITH. I PROTECT YOU. YEAR OF OUR LORD 1718.' I have looked in books on historic drinking vessels, and there were glasses given out to members of guilds by the local 'kings' or whatever they called themselves in that area. I read that to be a member of a guild meant you were a respected member of your society. So what do you think? Have you any info on the trades of the German Klemmers?" HOME danny@clemmer.org |