Vaseline Glass

Also known as uranium glass, Vaseline glass has a yellow or yellow-green tinge with an oily sheen when viewed under natural or indoor light. Uranium glass had uranium oxide added to a glass mix before melting for coloration. Vaseline glass is transparent or translucent and should not be confused with Custard glass or Burmese glass which also contains uranium oxide, but is opaque. Popular uranium glass styles range from Victorian to Art Deco. Glass containing uranium is easily identified by viewing it under ultraviolet light (also known as black light) where it will glow a brilliant green.

Production of uranium glass was most popular from about 1840 through World War I. Around 1943, the U.S. government halted the production of Vaseline glass altogether when uranium became a heavily regulated substance. In 1958, uranium oxide was deregulated, and the production of uranium glass resumed. This time, however, producers used depleted uranium in place of more radioactive natural uranium.

During the Great Depression, manufactures added iron oxide (rust) to the uranium glass formula to give it a greener look. Carnival glass was also produced in some uranium glass varieties which gave it a marigold, iridescent look. Glass purists usually exclude this Depression glass and Carnival glass from the Vaseline glass family.

Practically since its invention, uranium glass carried a bad reputation because it was thought to be a health hazard. Usually Vaseline glass pieces contained from just a trace to about 2% uranium by weight. However, some pieces from the beginning of the 20^th century were up to 25% uranium by weight. The U. S. Nuclear Regulation Commission studied the health risks of Vaseline glass in its 2001 report. The report confirmed what collectors had been saying all along. The radiation from Vaseline glass is less harmful than the background radiation levels we are exposed to every day.

This week at Prairie Museum of Art and History, Mike Weed, our maintenance guy, added an ultraviolet light to our Vaseline glass exhibit case. This new feature allows a visitor to switch the lighting between normal indoor light and ultraviolet light to observe the resulting bright green glow of the uranium.  

(Click image to enlarge)

Normal indoor lighting. 

 Brilliant green glow resulting from ultraviolet lighting.