Groundhog, Steuben Glass (Design by Taf Lebel Schaefer), lead crystal, 2011
In the 18th and 19th centuries, young ladies attending dances employed porcelain, marble, and glass eggs to cool hands, heated by the excitement of the evening. Steuben Glass created a line of crystal hand coolers that modernized the design into intricate works of glass art that nestles in one’s palm.
Steuben Glass was founded in 1903 by renowned English glass master Frederick Carder, who named it for Steuben County, where Corning is located.
In 2008, 105 years after it was founded, the Steuben division was sold by Corning Incorporated to retail conglomerate Schottenstein Stores. On September 15, 2011, Schottenstein announced it was shutting down Steuben’s Corning factory and Manhattan store, ending the company’s 108-year history.
The Corning Museum of Glass acquired the Steuben brand in 2016 and the factory was torn down to make room for an expansion of the museum. Now, Steuben Glass pieces are once more on display — and available for sale — at the museum.