- Posts about Sylvan Parrot Depression Glass
- Basic Information about Sylvan Parrot
- Sylvan Parrot Pieces Made
- Availability and Price
- Reproduction and Damage Concerns
Posts that Include Sylvan Parrot Depression Glass
- None of these posts cover Sylvan Parrot in any detail.
- Georgian Lovebirds Green Depression Glass from Federal
- Peacocks, Pheasants, Birds of a Feather – Etched Glass Patterns
- More Eye Candy! Memories of the Depression Glass Show
- Is Madrid the Only Candle Holder from Federal Glass in the Depression Era?
- Federal’s Amber Depression Glass – Sharon Cabbage Rose
Basic Information about Sylvan Parrot Depression Glass
Federal Glass made Sylvan mold etched depression glass from 1931 to 1932, a short production period. Collectors named it “Parrot” before they discovered the true name Federal gave this line. We refer to it as “Sylvan Parrot” to make it clear which pattern we are discussing and to honor those early collectors that did so much to research our glass.
Federal produced Sylvan Parrot in green and amber with a few pieces of crystal and the sherbet in blue. Most pieces are shaped like Madrid. Plates and bowls are square-ish with rounded corners, wide flat rims and round centers; however, the tumblers, creamer, sugar, sherbets have round feet and shakers’ feet are square.
The most striking aspect is the group of parrots together on a branch under palm trees, lovely and unique in depression glass. You can almost hear them calling! The birds fill the plate centers and you can see in the sugar above how they dominate the design.
Sylvan Parrot Pieces Produced
Federal apparently intended Parrot as a dinnerware line as they made an extended lineup of pieces for place settings and serving, plus a beverage service. Look for 2 bowls, a 5 inch berry and 7 inch soup, both with rims, 3 plates, sherbet, salad and dinner, plus grill plates. The plates are on the small side, 7 inches across (width from straight side to straight side) which is small for lunch use, and 9 inches for dinner. There is no amber salad. The green grill plate is round and the amber grill is square-ish.
Also look for the Parrot cup and saucer and sherbet. Almost all the sherbets are footed cone shapes, much as we see in Madrid. There is a taller sherbet that I’ve not seen even in photos.
There are several serving pieces, most of which are unfortunately not easy to find. There are two serving bowls, the 8 inch round bowl and this lovely oblong vegetable bowl. The vegetable bowl has no cover.
There is an oblong platter, a square-ish butter dish a jam dish, creamer, sugar and sugar lid and shakers. The jam dish is 7 inches across, the same size as the butter base except the butter dish has a small ridge to keep the lid steady and the jam is shallower than than the soup bowl. Another interesting piece is the 5 inch hot plate. These are meant as trivets or possibly as inserts in a wooden tray similar to what we see in Federal’s Georgian Lovebirds.
Federal made a green large pitcher, 8 1/2 inches tall, no ice lip and 3 tumblers ranging from 4 1/4 inches to 5 1/2 inches tall in green and the same tumblers in amber plus a footed tumbler in amber.
Sylvan Parrot Availability and Pricing
Sylvan Parrot is not abundant. In 20 years shopping for glass we found 2 pieces, the oblong vegetable bowl and the sugar sans lid. You might see it at the occasional antique mall or at glass shows but if you choose to glass shop only in person this might be a long hard path to get many pieces.
On eBay just now I found several pieces of green Parrot (and a few mislabeled Georgian Lovebirds pieces) and a very few pieces of amber. This is an expensive pattern, with only a few pieces listed under $25 (not including shipping). Prices in my 2010 Collector’s Encyclopedia of Depression Glass are even higher than I saw on eBay, with Florence estimating the green cup and saucer at $38, so keep this in mind.
From what I’ve read, Sylvan Parrot has always had a following, has always been on the hard-to-find side and has always been somewhat pricey. That said, if you like it, buy it and enjoy it!
Damage and Reproduction Concerns
Sylvan Parrot has wide, flat rims with sharp drop offs on the inside, which means the inner rim is easy to chip. Run your finger along the inner rim, both on top and along the side, plus the outside edge rim. My bowl shown above had lots of manufacturing flaws, but luckily no chips.
The other concern is the vertical ribs you can see in the sugar bowl, and which the sherbets, creamer and I think cups have too. This vertical rib ends in a point on the outside rim. Madrid has this same shape and I noticed several pieces had a bit of extra glass on the rims that extended up just a hair, and of course these were vulnerable spots on the points.
Federal’s Sylvan Parrot pattern has not been reproduced. However, there are other Parrot designs and some patterns also called Sylvan. If you buy online be sure to check the photos to verify that the piece is indeed Sylvan Parrot.
Federal’s Georgian (Lovebirds) pattern has two lovebirds, parakeets in shield-shaped medallions with swags; compare to Parrot which has birds that are larger and perched outdoors in the tropics. Take a good look and you will not have any problems telling the patterns apart. This is Georgian Lovebirds.
I can’t think of any other depression glass patterns with birds.
These next pieces are elegant glass, Tiffin satin green with painted birds, Jungle pattern, highly collectible and lovely.
There are another handful of glass patterns named “Sylvan”, they are all elegant glass and you aren’t likely to mistake them for our Parrot. This is an example, Sylvan from Duncan Miller, a personal favorite that has no birds! The others are from Tiffin and Fostoria.
Summary
Federal’s Sylvan Parrot is lovely in green or amber with big birds in a lavish tropical setting. The pattern is dinnerware plus tumblers and a pitcher. Pieces are rather hard to find and more costly than many depression glass. There are no reproductions to beware but do be careful to check inner rims and the points atop the vertical ribs, and always verify the pattern name.
Enjoy your glass!