This glorious example of handblown glass is an epergne, an elaborate centerpiece that would beautify any banquet. The epergne first appeared in the early 1700s. Originally wrought of silver, the epergne featured a center basket or bowl from which radiated branches holding little bowls or baskets, all filled with fruit, sweets, and other treats. It is thought that epergne is derived from the French word "épargne" for "saving," perhaps because dinner guests could help themselves to a laden epergne situated on a sideboard, saving them the trouble of passing dishes. In the Victorian period, elaborate epergnes of brilliantly colored glass. like this stunning example, were used to display fragrant bouquets of fresh-cut flowers.
The rosy red glass is called "cranberry," a color especially favored by the Victorians. The rich red of cranberry glass, also known as gold ruby glass, is achieved by adding gold salts or colloidal gold to the molten glass. Because of the use of gold in its creation, cranberry glass was used primarily to create expensive glassware and ornaments. A piece as ornate as this epergne, with its extensive use of costly cranberry glass, served to display not only flowers, but also its owner's taste and class.
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