The Gemstone Topaz Galaxy in a Bottle by Island Of Wight
✨ Anatomy of an Enchantment✨
✨ If you look closely, this bottle isn't just coloured glass—it is a frozen landscape. Here is what makes the Gemstone Topaz design so captivating:
✨ The Golden Sands ✨
The body of the bottle is infused with gold and silver leaf. This gives it that shattered moonlight texture—a background that glimmers like wet sand at sunset.
✨ The Ribbons of Wind ✨
The Topaz descriptor refers to the golden-amber base, but this specific piece is alive with swirling ribbons of rose-pink, soft violet, and sea-foam green. These colours are trailed over the hot glass and twisted, creating a pattern that looks like oil paint floating on water.
✨ The Crowning Jewel ✨
Perched on top is a spherical stopper in a deep, translucent cranberry tone. It sits like a cherry on a very expensive sundae, offering a bold pop of colour that contrasts beautifully with the swirling chaos below.
✨ The Mark ✨
The black and gold square label reading "Isle of Wight Glass" is the seal of authenticity, confirming it was crafted by the skilled artisans at the Old Park, St. Lawrence studio on the Island of Wight.
✨ This bottle hails from the early 1990s (likely introduced around 1991-1992). The "Gemstone" range was designed to look exactly as it sounds: like a polished, semi-precious stone dug from a fantasy mine, sliced open to reveal the geological magic inside.
🔍 Collector's Note 🔍
The Gemstone range is beloved because no two pieces are ever truly identical. The glassblowers allowed the ribbons of color to flow organically, meaning this bottle has a fingerprint of swirls that exists nowhere else in the world. It is a flattened, lenticular shape—perfect for catching the light on a vanity table.
📖 The Tale of the Alchemist’s Island 📖
Once upon a time (specifically, in 1973), a master of glass named Michael Harris sought a place where he could experiment freely with fire and sand. He had already conquered Malta (founding Mdina Glass), but he craved the white cliffs and sea mists of England. He settled on the Isle of Wight, just off the south coast of the UK, and established Isle of Wight Studio Glass.
The studio became legendary for its "controlled accidents." They didn't just blow glass; they painted with it. They were famous for incorporating precious metals—gold and silver leaf—directly into the molten glass.
The stopper is firmly stuck in the bottle and there is absolutely no chips or cracks of any kind.
All items are in vintage and antique preloved condition. Some minor surface scratches may be present. I do my best to note and photograph any wear. Please contact me with any further questions :)