The Vivid Greens of Dugan and Diamond - by Larry Keig

Both Dugan and Diamond produced vivid greens, in two shades. One is "regular" green, a strong medium to dark base color; the other, olive.  Neither shade was made in large quantities.  In fact, with the exception of but one pattern, these companies' greens are extremely rare, some are "only knowns."

"Regular" Green.  Only a dozen or so patterns have been reported in medium and dark green, and not all of those have been authenticated.  Why Dugan and Diamond made so little green is not clear.  But we can speculate that one reason is its usual less-than-spectacular iridescence.  The luster of these firms' greens rarely rises to the high quality of the best of Fenton's and Northwood's.  Dugan and Diamond company officials may have decided to direct their efforts and resources to their staples -- peach opal, purple and amethyst, oxblood, white, and marigold, colors that customers preferred and that therefore boosted profit margins.

Three vases -- Pulled Loop, Target, and Wide Rib -- were almost certainly the first green Dugan produced when the color was introduced in 1911 or 1912.  Despite being offered in industry marketing materials, in other words made as production items, the three must have been made in ext very small runs, for none of them shows up often for sale nowadays.

The only pattern-and-shape combination in which green can be found with any frequency is the Vintage dome-footed bowl.  But even it is scarce, with few selling in any of today's purchasing venues.  One nut bowl is also said to exist.  It would have, I assume, the straight-up sides and the flat-ruffled top edge that characterize other Dugan-Diamond nut bowls.  A green plate in this pattern would be a great find and might sometime surface.  It is interesting to note that Vintage is a relatively late pattern, introduced by Diamond in 1916 or 1917.  How date of manufacture affected the number produced, compared to the paucity of other Dugan and Diamond green, has not yet been determined.

Four pattern-shape combinations are extremely rare: Double Stem Rose bowls that can be counted on the fingers of one hand; an "only-known" Fanciful plate; three or four three-and-one Farmyard bowls and another in a ruffled, square shape (which sold at a September 2007, Mickey Reichel Auction for $13,000); and a "one-of-a-kind" large ruffled Persian Garden bowl.  All are obviously highly treasured by their owners.

Four other pattern and shapes remain in the "maybe" category -- reported to exist but not definitely confirmed.  These are bowls in three patterns -- Apple Blossoms, Bells and Beads, and a small Maple Leaf -- and a Paneled Tree Trunk vase.  I wouldn't wager much money that these actually exist, but sometimes a better can be sorry he or she didn't put a little more cash on the table.

In addition to the aforementioned, a Question Marks bonbon in green was listed in the brochure for a 1991 Burns auction.  My guess is that it was lime (or light) green with a marigold overlay, rather than regular green, but I can't be sure.
 

Note: Photograph of green Farmyard bowl provided by and used with permission of Mickey Reichel Antique & Auction, L.C.

Olive Green.  Just three patterns have been reported in olive -- a medium green with a touch of yellow in the mix.  They are Double Stem Rose bowls, Pulled Loop vases, and Coin Spot compotes.  Mainly because the bowls and the vases were also made in regular green and because there is some question about the nature of the base color of the compote (perhaps more of a light green than an olive), I suspect that olive came into being by accident, the result of a "bad batch," not by plan -- or, perhaps, as an experiment in color or effect.  Regardless, all are very rare.

The original company and industry marketing monikers for most Dugan and many Diamond colors have come to light but not that, to the best of my knowledge, for green.  I've wondered what Thomas E.A. Dugan, who managed the company when its first carnival glass was made, called the color in the early years.  This is one of those questions about vintage carnival that remains unanswered.

I've put together two tables that summarize patterns, shapes, and availability.  I hope everyone will look them over carefully and let me know if there are additions or corrections: Larry Keig, 1614 Merner Ave., Cedar Falls, IA  50613; 319.266.5044; larry.keig@cfu.net.

Table 1. Green ("Regular" Dark and Medium)

Table 2. Olive Green