This is a space for collectors to answer any questions about uranium glass that people may have.
I’d like to start with some questions I get pretty often (and that were recently asked by the admin of the instance, Wintermute):
How much Uranium is in the glass anyway? Should you even be holding that?
The actual uranium content in uranium glass is usually between trace amounts and 2% by weight, but you can find pieces that are up to 25% uranium by weight. (Source: ORAU Museum of Radiation and Radioactivity) Many of my pieces, when measured with a Geiger counter, are within what’s considered a low-risk range of radioactivity. Some people use their uranium glass, but I prefer to keep my handling of it to a minimum.
I think it only fluoresces like this under black light, right? Does it just look like normal glass in natural light?
UV light in general causes the glass to fluoresce. Black lights get you the best results, but some pieces fluoresce quite brightly under direct sunlight. Under natural light, most pieces are a transparent yellow-green.
Do they still make this stuff today, or is it all vintage?
Some companies make it today, but the majority you’ll find is vintage. The majority of my collection is from the 1910s-1930s, with a few pieces from the 1970s!
Where do you find it? If it’s mostly thrift stores and that kind of thing, do they usually know what it is or do they just think it’s regular glass?
Thrift stores, antique stores, auctions, eBay. Where I’m at, it’s mostly 50/50 as to whether the seller knows or not. That also influences the price – I’ve gotten pieces for under a dollar because someone just thought it was their grandma’s green glass.
Is it dangerous to blow glass with uranium pigment? Is the pigment itself before being mixed into the glass more hazardous? Why has it been mostly phased out?
The big danger with uranium is getting it inside of you. Its a heavy metal and radioactive so lots of bad can happen. Preparing the iranium usually requires some chemistry to get it into a form that will create uranium oxide at high temperatures and that form is a fine powder than can easily become airborn. It is way more dangerous before it is in the glass.
Once it is in the glass, no problem. I wouldnt eat or drink from dishes made from it because trace amounts do leach out over time. Probably not enough to hurt you but also not enough to be absolutely safe.
Blowing the glass shouldnt be an issue just like using it for sculpting.