Posted 9 years ago
funkyweaver
(1 item)
We were cleaning out a relative's garage and found this piece of glass. I asked another relative if they knew what it was and they said it was a locomotive lens. After doing a little bit of research, I still have no idea. This lens came from my grandfather-inlaw, who would be about 80 years old now. The lens is in Pennsylvania and most likely this is where he got it, since he never traveled anywhere. It's is 21 inches in diameter and over 1/4 inch thick, and made of glass. Anyone have any idea on what or where it came from? There are no markings on it.
Is it flat or is it convex? I'm presuming that since you referred to it as a lens that it's likely convex. It's probably a piece of "bubble glass" (a.k.a. dome glass) - a bowl-shaped piece of glass? More pictures, especially from the side might help.
I have a 7.25" glass lens - it's a solid piece of glass that's flat on one side and convex on the other... basically a very large magnifying glass. It was used as part of a searchlight on an old boat.
If yours is of uniform thickness (bubble/dome glass) then it was more likely part of an old picture frame. Circular and oval glass of this sort was very popular on the older photo frames, but would serve no purpose as a lens since it doesn't focus or refract light, and it's also quite fragile so wouldn't last too long on the front of a train locomotive!
https://www.google.ca/search?biw=1275&bih=919&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=bubble+glass+frame&oq=bubble+glass+frame
What else did you find???