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6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats
6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats

6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats

$ 31.15

Availability: 100 in stock

Description

6 Real Japanese Glass Fishing floats - Alaska - Glass balls - Glass floats. Shipped with USPS Priority Mail.
3" - 3.25" floats. Exact floats pictured will be sent.
These glass floats were found on beaches of Alaska. Though they are beautiful they actually have a lot of amazing history behind it. Here is a summary of the history and then I will explain more afterwards. Glass floats were used for fishing. After hand blowing the floats with recycled bottles they would tie netting around them with a long string so it would attach to the fishing net. Essentially, glass floats are the corks on a net that we now use; in fact, after they stopped creating the glass floats they used wood corks, plastic, and corks. Since the boat would be heavy from the fish, they cut the line that attached the float to the net to lighten the load. These floats then followed the current and got pushed onto the beaches. Sometimes the netting that was originally around the ball falls off during its travel to the beach because of the wear and tear. You may be wondering why some look frosty compared to others. The etching on the floats is from being sand blasted after sitting on the beach, which can create a cool webbing look on the float or all around it. Majority of the floats found do not have the net on them so that is why they would be priced higher as they are not as common.
Some more history in the origin of the floats:
Most glass floats were made in Japan; however, there are other countries like Germany, Norway, Denmark, England, Scotland, Russia, and others. Glass floats can be traced back to Norway in 1844, which Japan stared copying the floats around 1910. The bulk of the glass floats were made in 1930-1960. They were quickly blown with a blowpipe from old sake bottles and sealed with a 'button' of melted glass. Some glass blowers stamped their company "logo" so they could identify where they came from. Common stamps that you will see are I , II, III, and + . There are collectors that actually value their floats based on how rare it is. Later on around the 1940s they made the floats from a mold instead of hand-blowing. You can tell from a seam on the float that is around the circumference.
It is estimated that these floats are a minimum of ten years old before they wash up on the beaches in Alaska. Most of our floats are from 1940-1960. Today, these floats are getting harder to find as there is not many washing up on the beaches. I was fortunate enough to grow up collecting these floats while they were still washing up along the beaches. Please let me know if you are looking for something specific or special and we will do our best to fill that order. Examples of potential special requests include dark ember colored floats, floats with barnacles grown around, water inside, swirls of color around the float, or a larger order of floats.
Who would've thought these sturdy floats traveled so far and still did not break? Hope you enjoy these beautiful glass floats as they hold so much history and make a great decorative piece. They truly are amazing.