"Sun Glass"

A decorating magazine recently ran a full page picture of a dealer selling light and dark purple "sun glass." He says the bottles turned purple over decades of exposure to the sun's UV rays. Value up to $180 apiece. Only old bottles and jars, those made from about 1860 to 1915 with manganese in the glass, will become sun-colored amethyst (also called SCA), a lighter shade of purple. But beware, the dark purple and many lavender bottles you see at the flea markets have been irradiated--an artificial process. Collectors know those altered bottles are decorative only and should sell for very little.

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