http://www.theglassgallery.com - Paperweight collecting often begins with a fascination for these unusual pieces; the awareness of an obscure and compelling art form. Then comes the desire to know more about them: who made them, how are they made, where did they come from, who else collects them, their inherent worth and value.

In the following excerpt from The Encyclopedia of Glass Paperweights, Paul Hollister describes the initial questioning stage of collecting paperweights: "Precisely what is it, one asks, that is inside this paperweight? And continues to ask even when one knows it is simply colored glass. We are gazing into a mystery whose true dimensions and physical composition our senses are unable to pinpoint, a mystery sealed away in perpetuity. You may look at it but you cannot touch it.