Conglomerate Vase

This exquisite confection, known as the "Conglomerate Vase," stopped visitors to the 1878 Paris Exposition in their tracks. Tiffany records describe an ambitious proposal to create a vase that incorporates all the various Japanese alloys, noting inspiration for the decoration came from a box in Moore’s collection "boldly treated in reds, greens, black, browns & a variety of colors." The vase, which has a Chinese meiping form, showcases the results of rigorous study and experimentation to replicate the myriad tones, textures, and patterns of Japanese alloys. Notable among the innovations are the panels of swirling laminated metals, a technique called mokume-gane (wood grain). This vase announced to the world that Tiffany had absorbed and reimagined Japanese metalworking techniques and design principles.