HEAVIEST PURPLE -- Winning this category is a CD 140 unembossed Jumbo. Look at that great milk swirl and realize that this piece was retrieved from the subways of Boston, Massachusetts many years ago. More than one of these exist, but this is the best of the bunch!

TALLEST PURPLE -- is this one-of-a-kind, as far as I know. The majesty of the CD 317 Chambers "candlestick" is popular in aqua. But the ones in green and sapphire blue pale by comparison to this great looking purple example.

A RUBY RED -- Yes, Pyrex made ruby red glass in their line of products, but you probably never knew that there was a CD 234 Pyrex 63 that was made in ruby red glass. 

Above is a typical carnival CD 234 from a "D" mold, as is the ruby red example on the right. Serving as a paperweight on a Pyrex executive's desk for many years, it was traded to a collector several years ago.

Nearly had to stand on my head to get a good photograph showing the dark red color of the glass.

TRAMPS -- Rare and certainly no ho-hum hobo-types!

The CD 196 "B" was picked from rural Illinois lines in the early 1970's. 

Not much is known about the CD 203 Armstrong. The amber color is a flashed amber applied at the factory and the hole through the dome of the piece looks to be drilled into the top of the pinhole.

PROUD AS A PEACOCK -- Well, it has been rumored for many years that there was a CD 160 baby signal in peacock blue. I was skeptical, but now I am a believer! Most incredible find this year!

To start 2002 with a bang, a colorful bang at that, I thought I'd share some more of the wonderful, and rare, colored gems that surfaced or resurfaced in 2001. The editor and I spent a lot of time on the road last year, attending shows, visiting collectors, and occasionally, buying a collection. The six pieces pictured in the color insert all showed up in one of these three venues.

Heaviest Purple - At the top of page 33 is the grandaddy of the CD 140 earless Jumbos. I am aware of three of these residing in collections, but the purple color on this one is nothing short of spectacular, and the distinct milk swirling is an added bonus. Most of the CD 140s were retrieved from the Boston subways in the late 60's and early 70's. A few are still turning up in the northeast, Believe It Or Not!

Tallest Purple - To the best of my knowledge, the CD 317 Chambers in sun-colored amethyst is one of two known. The color is a little on the dull side, but when you're talking about an SCA Chambers, who's complaining. Certainly owner Tommy Bolack isn't!

This piece originally came out of the collection of Pearl Stegemiller from Rising Sun, Indiana in the mid-70's. For those of you who are interested in insulator trivia, you might want to look back in the August 1973 Crown Jewels of the Wire for an ad that Pearl placed to sell her collection.

The ad read: 4,500 insulators for sale including 17 large Chambers! Best offer over $3,000. The ad went wanting for a buyer for several months until a couple from North Olmsted, Ohio took out a loan on their insurance policy and brought the collection home. That event changed the McDougald family from casual collectors to insulator addicts, Believe It Or Not!

A Ruby Red - The CD 234 Pyrex in ruby red surfaced for the first time to my knowledge in 2001 at the eastern regional show in Corning, New York (page 34). Considering the source, there is no question as to its authenticity, and considering "red" is the missing color in insulatordom, this is quite a find. Since this one showed up, we have heard rumors of the existence of a second one, although to date, it has not been verified.

Tramps - Here are a couple of unusual pieces to tempt all the transposition collectors in the audience. The CD 196 "B" in beautiful olive green came out of a very old collection that had been boxed up for years. The collector was a retired lineman from southern Illinois, and most of his collection, including this piece was picked off the local lines. He was a good friend of Edna McDonald (a name familiar to most old time New England collectors), and he reported that the last show he attended (that's right, the last show) was the 1971 national in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He also told me that he did most of his picking with his foreman, and that he also has (had) and olive green CD 196, Believe It Or Not! 

The CD 203 Armstrong has two very interesting features: (1) it's flashed amber, and (2) it has a hole drilled in the top. I was suspicious of the piece when it was first reported, but I've inspected it carefully, and it looks like both unusual characteristics were original, factory applied and drilled. Unfortunately, the owners Dennis and Jeanne Weber have no known history about this piece, so the color and purpose for the hole remain a mystery.

Proud as a Peacock - Possibly the finest discovery of the year is the piece pictured on page 36, a CD 160 H.G.Co. Petticoat in peacock blue! That's right, it's a CD 160, not a CD 162. The color is a perfect match for a CD 164 H.G.Co. The piece has been sitting in the possession of a retired lineman from the Midwest for over 30 years. He was a casual insulator collector, never got involved in the hobby, but he liked the colors. And he took this piece down himself. As you can see, it sustained a little damage in service, but the hobby is certainly appreciative of the care with which this piece was handled over the last 30 year period. If you're a baby signal collector, you now have a new piece to look for, Believe It Or Not!