Rare Tiffany Studios Favrile “o” Series Special Order Vase, circa 1895

This jewel-like cabinet vase comes from the very beginning of Louis Comfort Tiffany’s blown glass production. It is one of the rare early pieces engraved with Tiffany’s distinctive lowercase “o” prefix, which Tiffany scholar Robert Koch identified as a mark for special orders made for a specific client or request.

Standing just 4 inches tall, the vase has the presence of a much larger piece. Its deep, near-black ground is alive with iridescence that moves from peacock blue and emerald to violet, magenta and molten gold as the light changes. Heart-shaped leaves and trailing vines wrap the shouldered body, set within the glass while it was still molten. Tiffany’s gaffers then gave the surface a crackled, shimmering luster that changes with every turn. Under the foot, a band of alternating gold and violet-blue iridescence encircles the polished base. It is a small but deliberate detail that shows the care given to this commission.

Registry number and date. The base is engraved “o684.” Tiffany’s “o” series is among the earliest numbering systems the firm used, from about 1895 to 1900. A three-digit number places this vase near the very start of that run, about 1895, during the first years of Tiffany’s Favrile glass production at Corona and before the firm began routinely engraving “L.C.T.” on its pieces. Few surviving Tiffany vases carry an “o” number this low.