“a  new  line  of  business,  which  spread  from  here  into  the  neighborhood  and  has  heldon  to  the
present  day.  Realizing  correctly  that  iridescent  glass  would  come  into  fashion,  one  started  iridizing ­
  mostly  seed  beads  and  a  fewjewelry  articles  (the  bijouterie-wares  producer  Josef  Ullmannin
Morchenstern  was  the  first  to  try  iridescence  on  jewelry  and  buttons).  Paul  Weiskopf  supplied  the
necessarv  chomicals  or  oot  thom  from  somGwh&rG  olso...
Other  metallic  reflection  effects  such  as  luster  were  used  for  decoration.  The  results  offortunate
coincidences  were  exploited  and  led  to  specialization  in  the  business  and  so  this  branchofwork
has  lasted  up  to  the  present.  The  equipment,  the  iridizing  drum  or  muffle,  is  fairly  simple  to  use,  a
kiln  was  also  needed  for  the  rest  of  the  procedure..."  (Meissner  1954,  p.  22).
The  Company  Zimmermann  &  Weiskopf/Morchenstern  which  was  registered  in  1876
after  the  death  of  Hartwig  Weiskopf,  printed  business  cards  listing  numerous
“Chemical  products  for  decorating  glass,  porcelain  and  ceramic  wares:  vitrifiable  and
luster  colors;  Chemicals  for  gilding,  silver  coating,  platinizing  and  etchmg;  enamel
colors,  aniline  dyes,  aniline  paint  dyes,  adhesives,  etc."
Meissner  pointed  expressly  to  Weiskopf’s  products  and  their  importance:
“Iris  and  luster,  and  different  metallic  reflexes  were  very  much  the  fashion  for  decorating  beads
and  other  jewelry  articles,  also  gilding  and  silver  coating  for  seed  beads,  and  for  that  reason  the
demand  for  Chemicals  for  these  purposes  mcreased  enormously...  (Meissner  1954,  p.  22).
In  1886  Duisburg  &  Co.  in  Gablonz  and  Anton  Brückner  in  Morchenstern  were
awarded  a  privilege  (No.  36/1586)  for  a  process  for  achieveing  a  mother-of-pearl  effect
on  glass  buttons,  glass  beads  and  similar  glass  products  by  “Incorporatmg  iridescent
glass  clumps,  pieces  of  glass  or  glass  beads  into  the  glass  batch.  ”
Iridizing  and  lustering,  developed  during  the  period  of  histoncism,  became  one  of  the
characteristic  art  nouveau  finishing  techniques,  also  used  for  gkass  and  porcelain
beads  A  display  of  these  achievements  was  provided  by  the  German-Bohemian
exhibition  in  Reichenberg.  Here  Joh.  Pitter,  Neudorf,  showed  innumerable  drawn
beads-  “About  100  of  the  many  color  effects  are  presented  and  achieve  various  lusters
or  iridescent  effects  by  firing”  (Arnold  1909,  pp.  89,  90).  The  pressed  beads  fromJoh.
Pitter  Neudorf,  were  also  “for  additional  refinmg  ...  cut,  iridized,  decorated  with  melted
on  brocade  flimmer  or  rapidly  cooled  after  pressing  so  that  the  surface  becomes
stranqely  cracked.  ”(Arnold  1909,  p.  92).  One  can  presume  that  this  Company  was  only
one  of  many  which  made  use  of  iridescent  and  lustered  effects,  which  were  also  very
well  received  throughout  the  art  nouveau  period  and  into  the  art  deco  of  the  time
between  the  two  wars.  „  .  .  Q „ n
A  selection  taken  from  a  list  of  products  found  in  a  Contemporary  source  from  1930
appears  to  be  characteristic  for  the  period:  .  n
The  Chemical  laboratory  of  Anton  Rössler  in  Gablonz,  founded  in  1919  produced
silver  nitrate  and  gold  Chloride  for  processing  blown  beads  and  Imitation  stones  using
the  wet  method,  also  bright  gold  and  silver  luster  for  exterior  metalizing  of  glass  and
porcelain  wares  (Lodgman-Stein  1930,  p.  387).  Gustav  Keil  in  Gablonz  also  had  an
extensive  selection  to  point  to:  “Fabrication  of  solid  French  beads.  Strun9 ^ ea ^  °^
the  plainest  to  the  finest  execution  in  oriental-iris  for  jewelers,  etc.,  etc.  waxchatons
and  notions  for  bijouterie,  Iris  bugles,  pear-drops  buttons,  stones,  single  and  d ° uble
perforations,  smooth,  baroque,  etc.,  in  all  shapes"  (Lodgman-Stein  1930,  p  414)
One  of  the  most  important  Companies  was  probably  the  glass  b ead f actory,  TG^
Schöler  in  Wiesental  a.  N„  founded  in  1884  and  expanded  during  1925-1927,  which
employed  25  executives  and  workers  along  with  80  cottage  workers.  Their  P rodu £ ts
included  “qlass  beads  and  bugles  of  all  types,  which  are  used  for  dress  trimmmgs  hat
Ornaments,  lamp  fringes,  Ornaments,  embroideries,  etc.  ...  In  addition  to  the  modern
glass  bead  dye  works,  glass  beads  and  bugles  are  lustered,  iridized  and  electroplated
in  a  neighboring  building”.  (Lodgman-Stein  1930,  p.  434).

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