Caithness Glass

From the Graham Cooley Collection

In 2023 the museum celebrated a new gift to the collection with an exhibition of colourful glassware by Caithness Glass. From vases and bowls to thimbles and candlesticks, the range of goods designed and made by the company is impressive.

History of Caithness Glass

Caithness is the most northerly county on the British mainland. The first factory opened in Wick, the county’s Royal Burgh town, in 1961. The aim was to provide much needed skilled employment opportunities and create a product that could be sold around the world.

The early designs by Domhnall ÓBroin show a strong Scandinavian influence, while the colours were inspired by Highland landscapes. ÓBroin was followed by Colin Terris, and then a host of other designers, who introduced more colours and patterns.

A black and white photo of a man at a desk with a draughtsman's slope. He is wearing a tweed jacket over a shirt and tie. Behind him there is a rack of metal shelves with glassware of various shapes and sizes. The man is Domhnall O'broin, the first designer for Caithness Glass and the image is shown courtesy of his daughter, Emer O'Broin Gunter.

Domhnall O'Broin, designer for Caithness Glass

The products were popular and the company grew, establishing new factories in Oban in 1969, and Perth in 1979. In 1988 they took over the Wedgwood Crystal factory in King’s Lynn, Norfolk.

But by 2004, the company could no longer compete with cheap imports and rising production costs. It was bought out of receivership by Edinburgh Crystal but went back into receivership in 2006. This time it was bought by Dartington Crystal – another glass company with very similar origins to Caithness but based at the opposite end of the mainland, in Devon. Sadly all of the original factories have closed, but the Caithness brand is still owned by Dartington and operates from the Crieff Visitor Centre in Perthshire.

Vintage advertising postcard showing a glassblower blowing molten glass by a furnace. In the foreground, a row of coloured vases of different shapes show some of the products produced by Caithness Glass.

Glassblowing at Caithness Glass, Wick

The Graham Cooley Collection

Graham Cooley is a 20th century art collector based in England. In 2023 Graham Cooley generously donated over 350 Caithness Glass items to Inverness Museum. The focus of the collection is the company’s artglass and tableware, rather than the paperweights which have become synonymous with the Caithness brand.

Cooley previously donated a large collection of Caithness Glass to Perth Museum & Art Gallery, following an exhibition tour in 2011 which celebrated the company’s 50th anniversary. The 2011 exhibition venues were Broadfield House Glass Museum, near Stourbridge, Perth Museum & Art Gallery and King’s Lynn Art Centre in Norfolk. The tour was accompanied by a new book, Caithness Glass: Loch, Heather & Peat, written by collectables expert and TV personality, Mark Hill. The book is still an invaluable resource for collectors and is available to buy from the museum’s gift shop.

Two vases on a white background. On the left, a shorter green vase with blue stripes, and the right a tall deep pink vase with blue stripes. The stripes run diagonally in both directions, giving the appearance of tartan.

Caithness Glass tartan twist vases

Further Information

Wick Heritage Museum has an extensive collection of Caithness Glass on display. Much of this collection came from the Wick factory’s own visitor centre, after it closed.

Perth Museum has a large collection of Caithness Glass.

Caithness Glass is still made at Crieff Visitor Centre in Perthshire, where visitors can watch the glassmakers at work.

The exhibition of Caithness Glass from the Graham Cooley Collection ran from 17 June – 21 October 2023 in the IMAG Foyer Gallery.