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Ad Rates / Articles / Classified Ads / Editorial / Home / Links / Showtime   Marbles come in all sizes and colours    List Bob DeFreitas Next   Have you lost your marbles? By Bob DeFreitas When I hand someone my business card and tell them that, among other things, my specialization is in the collection and promotion of toy marbles as a hobby/collectible, they invariably blurt out, "have you lost your marbles?” with a laugh or a soft chuckle.   All in jest, I'm sure.   You have probably heard or used this expression yourself. I am not entirely certain of the origins of this phrase, but it likely had something to do with playing the very competitive childhood games that involved marbles during the first half of the 20th century in North America.   Although nobody knows for certain how long marbles and games involving marbles have been around, there is evidence, provided by historic documentation, that places the origins in Europe as early as the late 15th and early 16th centuries, and reaching North America in the 17th century.   The first marbles were produced from stone, primarily limestone, although other materials such as agate and alabaster were used. The manufacture of earthenware ( i.e. clay ) marbles became very popular in the 1800s, and by the 1840s glass marbles were being made in the Thuringen Region of Germany.   Marbles were essentially made by hand until American inventors of the early 20th century perfected the use of machinery to create marbles. These machine-made marbles were consistently rounder than the handmade imports and much more economical to produce. This, in effect, put an end to the handmade marble industry that flourished from the 1840s until the advent of World War 1.   From what I can determine, the amassing of marbles as a collectible really only started in earnest in North America during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Today, many consider the hobby of marble collecting to still be in its infancy with plenty of room for growth in all areas and for new collectors.   Many people who collect marbles do so out of a sense of nostalgia and to recall happy memories of an earlier period in their lives or the lives of loved ones. However, more and more people seem to be collecting today for the sheer beauty these marbles possess. As is the case with most collectibles, there are those, however, who buy and sell only to make a profit.   Given the state of the world economy today, antique and vintage marbles have held their market value, and for the more rare and unique types, values have increased significantly. (I personally believe that collectible marbles will continue to increase in value into the foreseeable future, and consequently constitute good investment potential - but, this is only my humble and biased opinion.)   Collectors place a great deal of importance on factors such as type, size, condition and eye appeal. General categories for types include: 1 - Antique Handmade Glass 2 - Antique Handmade Non-Glass 3 - Vintage Machine Made Glass 4 - Contemporary Handmade and Machine Made Glass and Non-Glass. Categories 1 and 2, for the most part, were produced in Lauscha, Thuringen, Germany from the early 1800s until about 1915.   Category 3 marbles had their heyday in the 1920s and 1930s and continued to be produced on a large scale until the 1970s. These marble producing factories were heavily concentrated in and around, but not limited to, the States of Illinois, Ohio and West Virginia.   It is also believed that a certain type of early hand-gathered slag glass marble was made somewhere in South-Western Ontario during the 1920s and 1930s, but there is no absolute proof of this. These marbles are often attributed to The Christensen Agate Company in Cambridge, Ohio, because the style and colour palates appear to be identical.   Category 4 handmade glass and non-glass marbles are relatively new. Contemporary glass artisans started producing handmade marbles, with some signing and dating their products, in the 1970s. Today, it is a flourishing business with collectors paying hundreds of dollars for a single marble by certain artists.   Mark Matthews is one of the most celebrated of these contemporary artists. A number of years ago, a glass jar containing 141 of his handmade glass marbles sold at auction for over $41,000 US. Additionally, modern machine made marbles are still being made today and the largest producer in the world is Vacor de Mexico in Mexico City.   It's quite like that some of these modern marbles being produced today will be the vintage collectible marbles of tomorrow. Marble sizes range from 7/16” to well over 2” in diameter. Most common sizes are in the 9/16” to 11/16” range. A 1/2” or less diameter marble is referred to as a Pee Wee and, a Shooter is generally defined as being at least 3/4”. The size of a marble was generally determined by the type of game for which it was going to be used. The larger marbles, particularly in the 2” and larger range were most likely made for display, similar to the old glass paperweights. I can't imagine anyone “knuckling down” with marbles of this size.   In terms of condition, collectors place marbles into one of four general grading categories, i.e. Mint, Near Mint, Good and Collectible. The range for collectability is based on the collector's personal preferences and objectives at the time of acquisition.   Most will collect marbles in the Mint to Near Mint categories, while some will include in their collections examples in the Good to Collectible categories until a better quality example comes along to replace it.   Grading of marbles is still somewhat subjective. However, having said that, there are widely accepted general definitions for each of the above categories. Some collectors use a plus or a minus ranking in each category to further elaborate on condition.   Others use a scale of 9.0 to 9.9 for Mint, 8.0 to 8.9 for Near Mint, 7.0 to 7.9 for Good, 6.0 to 6.9 for Collectible.   Anything less will be categorized as “Slingshot Material”. It seems that more and more collectors are gravitating to the latter numerical system, which is certainly more precise, and it's probably only a matter of time before a formal grading system evolves similar to that which exists for coins and sports cards.   Eye appeal is also very subjective and is generally intended to include, depending on type of marble, very clear glass, strong and vibrant colours and well formed cores and/or surface decoration.   In the United States, the hobby of collecting antique, vintage and contemporary marbles is fairly well advanced when compared to what exists in Canada today. This does not mean that there are no serious collectors in Canada because there certainly are many of us. We are just less open about it and do not promote the hobby as well as our American counterparts.   In the U.S., there are at least a dozen well organized Marble Shows during the course of any given year. One of the best is the Buckeye Marble Collectors Show held in New Philadelphia, Ohio, in February and Columbus, Ohio, in August - about an eight hour drive from Toronto. Canada has only had one Marble Show and I believe it was held in the Milton, Ontario, area in either 2002 or 2003. In the United States as well, there is a myriad of formalized Marble Clubs and Societies that promote, educate and disseminate information about marbles, their history and collectability. Many of them organize local shows, swap meets, etc., and help those less knowledgeable identify what they have and thus gain more interest in the hobby.   At one time there was an organization called the Canadian Marble Collectors Society in Ontario and they published a regular newsletter. Unfortunately, they no longer exist. It would be great to see this started up once again provided there was sufficient interest.   As more and more people become interested in collecting marbles, the prices they are realizing on resale are being driven higher and higher. American collectors and dealers believe that Canada is the last unexplored frontier when it comes to the quantity and quality of these precious little gems still waiting to be discovered.   I know that there are many people out there that have small caches of these old marbles stored away in attics, basements, old barns, sheds and dresser drawers. These are a legacy from their past and possibly a long forgotten part of their childhood or that of their parents or grandparents.   Take a look. You may be surprised at what you will find.   1 - Assorted antique handmade German swirls and clay marbles   2 - Antique handmade German onionskin marbles   3 - Antique General Grant solitaire board with 29 assorted marbles Bob DeFreitas is a recently certified CPPA or Canadian Personal Property Appraiser who specializes in antique hand-made and vintage machine-made toy marbles. He resides in Bowmanville, Ontario, and travels extensively through Central Canada and the United States in search of these small gems. If you are a collector and would be interested in joining a Canadian Marble Collector's Club, give Bob a call at 905-697-9739, or send e-mail him at robert.defreitas@sympatico.ca     Return to top of page   This Is Livin' Publishing © 2009 581 8th Line West, RR1 Hastings, ON, K0L 1Y0 Phone/Fax: 705-696-1833   webmaster