Monday, July 4, 2011

Mayonnaise Glass

In the early 1900's many Americans experienced new wealth.  They displayed their wealth by having elaborate table settings.  A set of china may be glass, porcelein, or pottery.  Many extra pieces were used at the table.

One of those was the mayonnaise.  Picture yourself planning for a big social dinner in 1920.  You have plates and silver.  What do you do with something like mayonnaise?  You can't just set a jar on the table!  Instead, you have a three-piece glass set.  A small plate with a bowl on top filled with mayonnaise and a scoop/label ready to scoop up the mayo.

You can find mayos made in Depression era glass and in porcelein.  I started this collection because I like glass, but I don't want a complete dinner set for each piece I like.  At an antique show in Nacogdoches, I found a pink glass mayonnaise in a style that was called elegant depression.  Since then I have picked up mayonnaise sets on ebay and at various shops and shows.  For today's table they are great for dips as well as mayonnaise.

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