This Tiffany Vase Has Already Arranged the Flowers
A fan of green glass, a few dark eyes and a silhouette that does the work.
Put a bouquet in this and you might start an argument with the vase. Its green body rises from a rounded base, narrows through the middle and spreads into a great rippling fan. Dark little spots stare out from the top. It already has a lot to say.
Designed by Louis C. Tiffany and made by Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company, this Favrile glass vessel dates to 1893–96. The Metropolitan Museum of Art records it as a gift from H. O. Havemeyer in 1896. It stands just over fourteen inches tall.
In the museum photograph, fine lines travel up the stem and open across the broad mouth. Green gives way to pale highlights and hints of pink and gold. The dark blue spots make the surface look almost feathered. That is a visual resemblance, rather than a claim that the museum identifies a particular bird.
The outline is just as good as the color. A substantial base supports that slim middle, then everything opens outward. Your eye can follow the entire gesture in a second, before going back for the small details.
Try looking at the photograph first from a distance, then close up. The shape holds its own; the surface rewards the second look. There are lovely objects that need a whole room arranged around them. This one could make a shelf feel like an occasion.
Explore the object: This Tiffany Vase Has Already Arranged the Flowers — The Metropolitan Museum of Art collection record.
Vase, 1893–96. Louis C. Tiffany. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of H. O. Havemeyer, 1896. Accession 96.17.10. Image: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Open Access, Public Domain / CC0. Collection record. Image use terms.
