Foreign Insulators
by Marilyn Albers

Reprinted from "Crown Jewels of the Wire", June 1985, page 25

Please take note of the elegant new logo heading my column this month! You's be seeing it every time from now on, and I just want you to know that this was a gift from my special friend, Clarice Gordon. She enjoys making people happy, and one day this just came in the mail all ready to go! If you know her, you'll also appreciate the fact that she agonized over the possibility that I might not like it. Clarice, I love it, it's perfect and how spiffy I feel, and all because of you. Thank you!

I would like to share with my readers a few of the letters that l have received. There are several more, and I'm sorry they won't all fit In here, but you will have an opportunity to see them In the issues to come.

New Logo

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Dear Mrs. Albers,

We had a find a couple of months ago of 2 glass insulators with the markings of 7/E.S.A. and C.T.N.E. on the bottom skirt. The skirt has rounded drip points. One of these insulators is CD 106 and the other is CD 154.

We have not been able to get or find any information of these two and now feel they must be foreign. We would like to know what they are and what the letters stand for, as they are both mint and want them in our collection.

Any help you can give us we would be very thankful to receive.
Very truly yours,
Sumner and Mabel Sandberg
N. Fort Myers, FL

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Dear Sumner and Mabel,

Please forgive the delay in my answer to your letter of inquiry about the E.S.A./C.T.N.E. glass insulators you have found. A great number of collectors have written to me recently with similar questions and there has been quite a stack of mail to answer! However, I like those kind of problems and am glad that people are asking. Just know that I will eventually answer all letters.

Your two insulators, CD 154 and CD 106, are definitely of Spanish manufacture. E.S.A. stands for ESPERANZA SOCIADAD ANONIMA. ESPERANZA is the name of a glass factory, and SOCIADAD ANONIMA loosely translated, means the same as 'Incorporated' does to us. The factory is located in Madrid, and manufactures all kinds of insulators for high and low voltage.

C.T.N.E. stands for COMPANIA TELEFONICA NACIONAL de ESPANA or National Telephone Company of Spain. The Esperanza Glass Co. was their supplier.

The CD's 106 and 154 you have are copied directly from our own Hemingray designs, including the round drip points and the standard U.S. pinhole, which is one inch in diameter and has 4 threads per inch. In fact, a number of Hemingray 42's have been found on lines in Spain sitting right next to their ESA. 'look-a-likes'! They all screwed onto wooden pins just like we have here in the States.

Most of these insulators are found in colors of ice green, aqua, green-aqua or emerald green, and you could expect to pay from $10.00 to $12.00 for either the CD 154 or the CD 106 in mint condition.

E.S.A. made several other designs as well, some of them having a definite European look to them. Any of these would be a welcome addition to a collection! Most of these can be found in the book 'Glass Insulators from Outside North America.'

Thanks for writing,
Marilyn

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Dear Marilyn,

Just a short note to tell you about an Italian(?) insulator that I found at an antique show last weekend in New Hampshire. It's not shown in your "Glass Insulators from Outside North America.' so I thought that I'd write just in case it hasn't been reported as yet. The embossing is extremely light, but by using a bright light and a magnifying glass I can make out what appears to be 4T4-B1 on the back, and MIVA on the front.

I hope that this is of interest to you; I'm waiting for an update on your books with baited breath!

Best wishes,
Milo E. Holland, Sr. NIA# 627
Shirley, MA

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I asked Milo if I could borrow his MIVA insulator to get a really  good look at it, even though he had sent a shadow outline, complete with measurements. He agreed to do this, and had some nice words to say about all the time and effort I'd put in acting as 'clearing house' for information in foreign insulators, and he was glad to have the chance to help. What a Dear!

After seeing the MIVA, I wrote him the following letter. Please also see the sketch of it along with a photo.

Dear Milo,

Thank you so much for loaning us the MIVA insulator, and also for your kind words! Serving as the 'clearing house' for information on foreign insulators has been very rewarding to me, especially as I see more and more interest being generated in them as a result of this column.

Mr. N. R. Woodward and I have looked very carefully at your insulator, and have both come to the same conclusion: that it is the top half of a 2-piece cemented glass unit designed for use on high voltage power lines. However, without the bottom half, it cannot be assigned a CD number. Should you ever find a complete insulator, please let us know.

In the meantime, it's shadow profile, measurements, embossings and emerald green color are all noted in the file for future reference.

You are correct in assuming that MIVA is an Italian marking. On the larger insulators, these letters are separated by periods: M.I.V.A. Quite a while ago, I consulted with an Italian neighbor, who does translations for Berlitz, and she, after considering the order of the letters, feels almost certain that they stand for MANIFATTURA ISOLATORI VETRO ANONIMA, or MANUFACTURERS OF GLASS INSULATORS, INC. There is no proof of this, but one day we will have the answer.

Enjoy your new insulator find, keep your eyes peeled for the rest of it, and write again if and when you are successful!
Sincerely,
Marilyn

Dear Marilyn,

I am enclosing an insulator, along with a check for return U.P.S. charges, for your inspection. I recently acquired a "pair" of these and I call them my "Dolly Partons!" Unfortunately, I can't identify them and hope you can help. Both have faint embossing on the skirt (I sent you the best specimen), but I can't make it out. I have checked Jack Tod's book as well as yours, but so far no luck. Have you seen this before? Hope you can identify them for me. Many thanks.
Sincerely,
Jim Overstreet NIA #2595 
Atlanta, GA

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When I answered Jim, I had to admit that I did not recognize the very faint incuse marking, but said the general shape of the insulator was similar to those coming from Korea. It is a heavy thing, has an inner skirt, and the 6mm threads inside the 1" pinhole made me know it was foreign. It will have a U-number all its own, as soon as Jack Tod and I can get together on it. "Dolly" was soon on her way back to Jim!

Shortly afterward, Jim wrote again.

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Marilyn,

Received the insulator in fine shape. Glad I was able to furnish a new addition.

I have been examining the embossing on both specimens and have come to the conclusion that the 4th letter is an "O" and not a "D". It was slightly questionable on the one you saw, but it is definitely an "O" on the other one. Unfortunately, the last letter could be a "Y" or an "I" or even an accent mark. I would definitely bet we are correct on at least the first four anyway....GINOR(Y)
Regards,
Jim

P.S. I won't forget you if I decide to part with one!

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Couldn't wait to get to the typewriter!

Dear Jim,

Eureka! Looks like we have a breakthrough. Starting out with what we thought was GINDRY, we were a bit "iffy" on that last letter -- was it a "Y" or an "I"? And now you 're sure the 4th letter is an "O" and not a "D". It's got to be GINORI. Richard Ginori of Milan, Italy. They not only produce a whole line of electrical insulators, but fine dinnerware and decorative objects as well. I've seen the dinnerware at Foley's department store right here in Houston. It's a big company. See page 21 of your Worldwide Porcelain Insulators book and you will find reference to it. Insulators were marked with either the complete name -- Richard Ginori -- or just the word GINORI. But this is the first time I have seen the incuse marking used instead of the usual underglaze green ink

Just identifying that insulator has made my day. So your Dolly Parton is Italian!!

Sincerely,
Marilyn

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We've had a lot of fun with this one, and I must tell you what followed. Jim said that since I had been so helpful in identifying his "Dolly Parton", he would let me have one and could we work out a trade? I thanked him profusely, and said "I've always wanted to look like her, but Jim, just one."?