Imperial Heavy Grape Purple Punch Bowl Set

The very first time I saw this punch set was at the April 2013 Heart of America Carnival Glass Association (HOACGA) banquet seminar conducted by the Johnsons. Just another reason to attend a convention.

I thought that this purple Heavy Grape punch set, made by Imperial, was all that and more. I talked with them after the seminar and they had no interest in selling it. Ok, no problem, happens quite often and I fully understand.

In 2014, I find out that they were going to be selling their collection at HOACGA, 2016. I ran into them at the 2014 International Carnival Glass Association (ICGA), auction. We talked again about their Heavy Grape punch set and they said that the auctioneer, Tom Burns, might not want the punch set in the auction, but they weren't sure. Hey....things are looking up a little.
 
Later in the year, around November, 2014, I called them to hear what they found out  from Tom Burns. They said it's official, the punch set would not be in the auction, and, in June 2015, they would be doing the seminar at the Lincoln-Land convention. WHAT??!!?? We live like 12 minutes from that convention.

To finally make this story short, they offered the punch set to me and I gratefully accepted. They brought it with them to the Lincoln-Land convention and I took ownership June, 2015.
 
The interior of the bowl are grapes & grape leaves with quilting all around on the sides. The interior of the cups are an iridized delight. We have eight cups and they are all different from one another. They all have grape leaves on the bottom and quilting around the sides and all have a different iridescence treatment.

This is one set that will be with us for a long time to come.

The Dick & Sherry Betker Collection

NOTE: A previous owner of this punch bowl, Steve Davis, recognized this set when we displayed it on Facebook. Here is what he had to say.

Steve writes, "Yes. I once owned this set. Back in the 70's we all relied on the Antique Trader magazine (to find glass listed for sale). We would eagerly await the arrival of the Trader although we never knew what day it would arrive. BUT, one week there was an ad from Dave Knoke in Atlanta. As I live in Macon and it's only an hour away, I called him about something in his ad. I'm not exactly sure what interested me and my mom in the ad but I think it was an ice green Grape & Cable banana bowl. So I went to Atlanta to meet him and discovered he was a banker and had lots of carnival glass displayed in the bank (on Monroe Drive NE) !

I bought the ice green banana bowl (and another one as well) and visited his home where he had lots of other carnival glass. And there it was....the Heavy Grape punch bowl and base. I didn't have any idea how rare it was. It was just something that I liked. I bought it for $700 which was A LOT of money in the 70's. I found a cup or two along the way, mostly from John Britt. I traded the punch bowl to Norene Duran as she was a great friend and an Imperial collector. She had the best collection of Imperial ever! Some time passed and I got the set back from Norene and later sold it to Bruce Hill who brokered the deal to the Johnsons. Then it went to the Betkers. It is an incredible punch bowl and this is really one that I hate I let go!"

~ Steve Davis