Glass fish

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Title

Glass fish

Description

This type of ornament was often seen in West Indian/Caribbean front rooms in Britain. It’s made with something called ‘end of day’ glass. This was made by glassworkers in their own time, using molten glass which had remained in their pots at the end of the day. That is why it tended to be a mixture of many different colours.

To a lot of people, arriving from their sunny and warm home countries to Britian was a shock. One person interviewed for the project remembered: “I arrived in England January 30th 1964. A very cold, grey, damp, foggy day and it was a real culture shock”.

Many Caribbean families used vases and fish made with this type of glass to add a splash of colour to their homes.

Alt text

colourful glass fish, blue, green, black and white patches on body, clear fins

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