Over the summer, we found some yellow-green bumpy glass within the Gunson collection. We had found our first sample of Uranium Glass on campus. Uranium glass, also known as vaseline glass due to its color, is glass that has uranium added to the mixture during the molten period when color is added. Due to the presence of uranium oxide in the glass, the glass will glow a bright green color when put under a black light- this is the best way to identify it.
Vaseline glass became popular during the midth century, and was at its height of popularity from the s to s. Uranium oxide was first used as a coloring agent in the s, and spread throughout Europe during the s. It was produced by a variety of companies, who specialized in different tones of greens and yellows. You'll be surprised at the beauty you discover. What Is Vaseline Glass? Glass that contains uranium is actually called uranium or citron glass. Glass makers and collectors in the United Kingdom use the term Vaseline glass for glass that is opalescent.
This type of Vaseline glass is called "Primrose Pearline. Safety of Vaseline Glass Because Vaseline glass contains uranium, many people wonder if it's dangerous. Vaseline Glass Is Safer Than Household Electronics Although Vaseline glass does have some tiny degree of radioactivity to it, but not in levels that would be harmful to humans. You Shouldn't Eat or Drink From Vaseline Glass Even though the radiation levels in Vaseline glass are low, the EPA suggests that people refrain from eating or drinking out of items made from this material.
Vaseline Glass History Uranium dioxide has been used to make glass for centuries and pieces have been found as old as from 79 A. How to Identify Vaseline Glass You can identify Vaseline glass primarily by its color and whether it can glow under a black light. The glass can range in color from a bright yellow to a greenish-yellow shade. Glow - When placed under ultraviolet or fluorescent light, it should glow a bright green color. Texture - Take a look at the texture. The glass is usually translucent and has been described as having an "oily" look to it.
Type - Know the types of piece. Vaseline and uranium glass pieces tended to be dishware, pitchers, mugs, antique bottles , vases, chandeliers, jewelry, and figurines. Vaseline Glass vs. Depression Glass There are a couple of other types of antique glass that people confuse with Vaseline glass. Custard Glass Custard glass is another type of yellow glass that was popular during the same time period. It emits alpha, beta, and gamma radiation. If it is inhaled or swallowed, radium is dangerous because there is no shielding inside the body.
If radium is ingested or inhaled, the radiation emitted by the radionuclide can interact with cells and damage them. During the production of radium dials, many workers who painted clock or instrument dials with radium developed cancer. To create fine tips on their paint brushes for small surfaces, many radium dial painters licked the bristles of their paintbrushes. In doing this, they often swallowed some of the radioactive paint.
In the body, radium acts similar to calcium, so the radium that workers ingested was deposited into their bones. Many of these workers developed bone cancer, usually in their jaws. Eventually, scientists and medical professionals realized that these workers' illnesses were being caused by internal contamination from the radium they ingested.
By the s, radium was no longer used on watch and clock dials. Uranium crystalline glaze on earthenware. Source: Smithsonian Institution. Before the s, many companies used radionuclides to color glazes. The most commonly used radionuclides were uranium, thorium, and potassium. These glazes can be found on floor and wall tiles, pottery and other ceramics. Some Fiestaware produced before used depleted uranium to create the color of the glaze.
Learn more about Depleted Uranium. Fie on all those sadists and their unwholesome contaminants! Especially modern creations, which are usually produced more responsibly than antiques. This article was such a pleasure to read. The presentation of the facts kick-started with the sardonic irony at the beginning really hooked me. Loved the title, too. And not much will leach out of glass.
So safe enough. As opposed to radioactive iodine which gets taken up by the thyroid. Or radium and radioactive strontium which collects in the bones.
Or plutonium dust if inhaled, very bad news. Side note, somewhere a friend has some neon made from uranium glass. Yes, canary glass, uranium glass, or Vaseline glass, as it became known in the early 20th century for its similar color to petroleum jelly, emits radiation, but the amounts are tiny, infinitesimal, ridiculously small.
I really want to get some of my own now!! And I am so thankful for this article. No one seems to understand how it works!! Any case, time to find me some uranium glass, aww yea! An incredibly well written piece. Thank you for taking the time to go so in-depth with your subject! I heard about this glass on that storage unit show. Very interesting. Very informative; thanks for the interesting read, recently picked up a black light , now able to look at my Vaseline glass in a new light so to speak!
Uranium glass is some really awesome stuff! Please keep in mind if anyone is actually worried about the uranium as a toxic element that much much less uranium is used to make uranium glass than lead or other elements to make lead or other glasses.
Uranium glass is one of the least radioactive items in my radioactive collection of radioactive household items. Here is a youtube video of uranium glass and other items that give off radiation being measured with a geigercounter.
There is no such thing as Uranium, it would have far too many neutrons. I have found many similar in red, clear, blue, Moser, Pohls, Beidermeier, Baccarrat, Waterford, several other makers, no cigar.
Supposedly it is to era. We have about pieces of all across the board, makers, s through today custom pieces by out friends the Melting Point in Sedona, AZ and have showed to many appraisors, glass collectors and no one has ever seen anything this magnificent, well made, beautiful, heavy for a lidded goblet, or chalice.
Maybe someone here can help us please?? Recently I checked irradiation with the Geiger counter. What kind of emission is this? I was told that this alpha emission which is harmless. However, information on the website indicates that this is beta and gamma at low doses.
If low doses why I have cpm? I will greatly appreciate you opinion. Have you ever seen pink vaseline glass? Building a Blacklight Display Case for all my Glass…. Just picked up a Geiger counter to check background and other things. To my surprise my wife had a old orange ceramic pumpkin candy dish or cookie jar with a plate for it to rest on.
I was checking a closet full of vases and dishes for radiation. Well this pumpkin lit up my Geiger to cpm and had a 2. Now I stay away from it. Actually all radioactive materials increase your risk for cancer. The greater the exposure the greater the risk. So if you own vasaline glass simply keep at at distance 6 feet from where people live and sleep.
The glass can also emit some radon gas so the simple solution is to store the glass in a plastic bag. Then open it up outside to let gas out. The Orange Fiesta wear is another matter.
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