Imperial Grape Contemporary - Imperial
Imperial seems to have launched the concept of reproducing Carnival Glass by using existing molds and iridizing them the same way as the originals. When this proved popular, they added shapes that had not been produced during the classic era but that might appeal to new collectors. Upper left is a typical offering of a water set that matches the old examples pretty well. It's in smoke. Notice that the tumblers are larger ice tea tumblers which were not made in the classic era. Standard size tumblers were also made in contemporary carnival.

Imperial Grape punch sets are very similar to classic era versions. Made in amber (shown above) and ice blue in contemporary glass.

In the photo to the left are several Imperial Grape shapes made in the contemporary period. The 9 1/2 inch tall carafe in ice green was made in the classic era but with a differently shaped top. The oval relish, 2 handles and 8 inches long is shown here in amber. The 9 inch tall cobalt covered compote is another new shape. The salt and pepper shakers are shown here in smoke and are also a new shape. The final two pieces are an ice green milk pitcher and a smoke 5 1/2 inch tall goblet.

At the upper right are a creamer and sugar, again not made during the classic era. Lower right is a small bowl, also found only in new glass.

Other shapes you'll run into are candleholders, tall salt and pepper shakers, 5 inch covered candy dishes, footed juice glasses and wine sets.

Mugs, as shown to the left, were not made during the classic era. Here's what John Valentine said about them: "The Green Mug was made by Pioneer Glass Works, they were a small operation that worked in the Imperial Factory for a while after the factory was closed. They did use some of the Imperial moulds, but did put a different marking on them to identify what they had made." They are found in Cobalt, marked 1987 and Green, marked 1988.

In the next photo are a cruet and a 1/4 pound butter dish--neither of which is found in older Carnival.