Affordable glass marbles were first made in the 19th century when a special pair of scissors that could cut molten glass was invented by a german glassblower.
Marbles valuable identifying.
This section discusses these.
The fine dust kicked up by the grinding machines used in the production process often gave the workers tuberculosis killing them young.
Agate marbles were chiefly produced in germany and the us and are among the most valuable on the market.
Marbles have been valued by collectors for nearly 100 years.
Here are some ways to determine if a marble is vintage or not.
Value is only assigned by what another collector pays for a particular piece.
Republican marbles are more valuable the carrara marble quarry in early republican rome bronze was the most popular material for sculptures followed closely by terracotta.
Marble was scarce in the apennine peninsula and the finest source of it close to rome was in the city of carrara.
Check out the appraisals page for more information.
Collectors must quickly identify a vintage marble recognize its manufacturer spot any flaws and have an in depth knowledge of the market.
There are a number of types of non glass marbles that collectors seek out.
They were usually cheap as they were made from local clay white clay called kaolin.
If you have a few marbles you need help identifying or would like an approximate value we are always happy to try and help you out at no cost.
Marble accessories help date the marbles and sometimes identify them so they have historical and monetary value.
They were not perfect in shape.
Simply email a digital image to us so we can give you a more accurate value of the marbles.
The price of the marble began at 500 and was estimated to sell for at least 2000.
Look for the pontil most vintage marbles were made by hand through the process called glassblowing.
Marbles with original accessories are rarer.
Marbles have been made from non glass materials such as wood clay and stone for hundreds if not thousands of years.
Find marbles in the original box in a game or with the original bag.
This black and white navarre marble is roughly 1 and a half inches in diameter.
No one knows exactly when the first marbles were invented but they date back to the times of the ancient egyptians greeks and romans who played with marbles made of stone clay or polished nuts.
Life expectancy for workers in the factories was around 35.