This is an example of an ‘everyday’ drinking glass from the second half of the 19th century. These were not elaborate pieces but well made and well used. Glass production in the mid-19th century expanded rapidly with glass making centres old and new increasing their output to meet rising consumer demand for smart, functional, clear-glass tableware. This particular glass is of a shape in production from c.1860, a type not well represented in museum collections, including the V&A, having not being considered fine art objects at the time of production.
Goblets of the period, like this example, often have thick bowl walls. This was not because the glass makers could not make the finer wares, but due to the preference for solid styles and also for the consumption of hot drinks. Such was the fashion for hot alcoholic drinks in the mid- to late-19th century these glasses would need to withstand the constant use and change of temperature, particularly when hot pokers were sometimes thrust into the liquid. The addition of the inscription by or for the owner demonstrates the popularity and use of this shape into the 1870s. It is unusual to find examples inscribed and dated in this way, possibly intended as a gift or for personal use by ‘G. B Clegg’. Generally dated engravings match quite closely with the attributed date of the glass, as is the case with this piece.