Taz Marbles

These were made by Vacor de Mexico, distributed by Mega Marbles and sold in Holland. Measuring 1 1/4", Looney Tunes Tasmanian Devil is everybody's favorite.

Josh Sable

Beginning with offhand glass blowing at California State University, Chico, Josh then moved to San Diego in 1999 and began a lampworking apprenticeship with Kaj Beck.

In the summer of 2000, Josh returned to the Chico area and continued working with glass. Josh then studied marble making with Jack Hanshaw, and over the next three years, focused primarily on marbles and hollow forms. In 2003, Josh moved back to San Diego continuing his focus on Contemporary glass marbles.

Peltier Comic Strip Marbles

This box of Peltier comic strip marbles are from the collection of Gary Stansgar. Circa 1930.

Vortex Marbles by Nathan Miers

A quintessential artist, Nathan Miers is one of about a dozen young and very talented glass artists living here on the West Coast. Working from his Eye Candy Arts studio in Northern CA, his marbles are an amazing display of color and space.


The vortex marbles pictured are but a small sample of Nathan's work, and like all artists profiled on this webpage, I cannot recommend his work highly enough.





To view Nathan's Eye Candy Arts website CLICK HERE.

Vitro Cateye Marble

This big beautiful cateye is over 1" and has the signature Vitro "V". It was offered for sale last weekend at the Orange County Marble Show for $125. From the collection of Gary Stansgar.

Contemporary by Thomas Thornburgh Jr.

Thomas Thornburgh has been a craftsman of contemporary hand painted clay (china style) marbles since 1994.

Carpet Bowls

Carpet bowls are very large orbs made of stone, clay, porcelain or pottery. They come in a variety of colors and patterns and are usually at least the size of a baseball. Used for a variety of indoor or small-scale bowling games, they were handmade in Scotland in the early 1800s. These measure 3 1/4"

Contemporary Fiberagates by Jeffrey Grey

These hand carved fiberglass spheres are the creation of artist-collector Jeffrey Grey.

Frosted Marbles circa 1950s & 60s

Vitro Agate was one of the first marble companies to "frost" marbles using a lightweight acid. Sometimes also called acid-washed or beach glass marbles, they were first produced in the late 1950s.

JABO Collector's Edition

Boxed sets of machine made marbles have always been popular. This collector's edition is dated 12/9/05. It's signed by Dave McCullough and contains ten marbles ranging in size from 3/4" to 1".

To see more contemporary machine-made marbles visit JABO's website by CLICKING HERE.

Banded Yellow Latticino circa Late 1800s

A German beauty, this yellow latticino has red and yellow bands and measures 2 1/8".

Marble Challenge #1: Unknown Artist

I purchased this handmade marble about 25 years ago. Though a favorite of mine, it's unsigned and the artist is unknown. So if you the reader know who made it, I'd really appreciate feedback.

At the bottom of this story is a "COMMENTS" link. If you know or think you might know who made this marble, then please leave a comment. Thanks.

Peltier Pee Wees circa 1930s

Five very pretty little 3/8" Peltier pee wees. Now in the collection of Steve Sturtz.

Hand Painted China by Nadine MacDonald

Making marbles since the 1980s, Nadine MacDonald makes contemporary hand painted china marbles by expanding on techniques used long, long ago.

Vitro Elite "V" Patch

Probably made in the 1940s, this 5/8" machine made V patch has the signature Vitro "V".

Antique Mica Swirls

These rare German mica swirls were handmade in the late 1800s. Both the red-banded and green swirl with ghost core are shooter sized. The smaller blue mist measures 1/2".

Dancing Horse Sulphide circa Late 1800s

This rare handmade German "donut hole" sulphide measures 1 9/16". Donut hole refers to the area of the figure with no clay. Donut hole sulphides are hard to make because the glass must be folded completely over the figure. Thus, because of the folding, it's also quite rare to find them without air bubbles.

Fisher Jewel Trays by VItro Agate Company

Patented in 1936, this set of two jewel trays was made by Vitro Agate Company. The larger "master tray" has turquoise marbles, while the smaller tray, which is pictured resting inside the master tray, is circled in black marbles. The smaller tray also has the stamped seal from the 1939 New York World's Fair.

Flower by Christina Cody

An elegant, contemporary flower by Christina Cody.


Christina is one of about a dozen young and very-skilled glass artists living here on the West Coast. To see more of her high-quality marbles at another website CLICK HERE.

Jabo Machine Made Metallic circa 2000

I recently purchased this contemporary, machine made, black glass "beer" marble, and perhaps with it an urban legend. :) As the story goes, while working late one night, machine operators "found" a six pack of beer, which they consumed, and later disposed of the cans by melting them in a vat of molten glass. I don't know if the story's true, but there is undeniably a metallic quality about the marble, which I'll treasure for years to come.

Getting back to the realm of confirmed fact, though Jabo, Inc. no longer manufactures marbles, it still offers a selection of collectible marbles at its website, which you can see by CLICKING HERE.

Contemporary by Andy Davis

Andy Davis, brother of Jim Davis, has been handcrafting marbles since 1995. This delightful little blue bird measures 2 3/16".

Girl Sulphide

Handmade in Germany in the late 1800s, this sulphide shows a girl in Victorian costume. It measures 1 1/4".

Banded Double Ribbon Core Swirl

Handmade in Germany in the late 1800s, this marble measures 2 3/8". The double ribbons are blue, red and white. The bands are red, white, green and yellow.

Peltier Rainbo Marbles circa 1930s

The rainbo [yes, that's the correct spelling] is a colorful machine made marble manufactured by S.H. Peltier of the Peltier Glass Company. The marbles pictured are called Christmas tree, rebel and patriot.

Pig Sulphide Marble circa Late 1800s

Handmade in Germany, this pig sulphide measures 1 3/4".

End of Day Indian Swirl

End of day marbles are some of the rarest handmade marbles. They have a single pontil, and typically, a multitude of colors.

The single pontil results from the fact that an End of Day marble is the final marble made from a glass cane. For a swirl marble, the glass cane can look like a large, straight, glass candycane. Five to twenty five marbles would typically be made from one cane, with the final one being the End of day marble. So, because they are the final marbles made from a cane, they have just one pontil, and typically, a multitude of colors; which can sometimes look like an onionskin or splaches of color.

Contemporary Marble by Anakin

Symmetry, geometry and balance are key design elements in Anakin's glass.

To see more of his amazing work visit his web site by CLICKING HERE.

Number Nine Sulphide circa Late 1800s

Turn it over and it's a six. This handmade German marble measures 1 5/16"

White Latticino Swirl

This swirl marble has a white latticino core with blue, gray, green and yellow bands. It is a handmade German marble, made in the late 1800s and measures 1 1/4".

Camel Sulphide circa Late 1800s

This handmade German sulphide measures measures 1 9/16"

Yellow Latticino Swirl circa Late 1800s

Handmade German swirl with yellow latticino core and red, white and blue bands, measuring 2 5/16 ". A slight orange tint to the glass makes the yellow core appear lightly orange.

Contemporary Sulphides by Jim Davis

I met Jim Davis a few years ago at a marble show and he told me that he made just two of these train sets. My grandson Jacob is now the proud owner of this set of 2" marbles.

To see other examples of the superior quality of Davis Marbles, visit their website by CLICKING HERE.

Contemporary Marbles by Harry & Wendy Besett's Vermont Glass Workshop

Harry and Wendy Besett create innovative contemporary marbles using a variety of unique techniques. Pictured are two cameo style etched spheres [top], and an Eisenglass metallica mica sphere [bottom].


The mica sphere was a gift from the artists. To see more of their innovative work, you can visit their web page by CLICKING HERE.

Rearing Horse Sulphide circa Late 1800s

This German handmade sulphide measures 1 15/16".