This is a spectacular Daum Nancy France crystal Athena art glass paperweight or sculpture designed by the Mexican architect and statesman Pedro Ramirez Vazquez (1919 - 2013). The stunning, clear, crystal-faceted female torso features a distinctive Cubist-influenced design. The paperweight is signed on the underside with the Daum acid-etched "Flower + Nancy" mark.
Reference:
The Daum mark, featuring a stylized flower and the name "Nancy," was reserved for artworks sold at the Daum factory in Nancy.
This stamp corresponds to the marking for the period from the 1960s to 2000. In 2000, a similar stamp design was used, but it contained the year (2001, 2002, etc.) as part of the design.
Considered factory seconds, these pieces were only sold in the factory store or to Daum employees and local Nancy residents once a year during an exceptional private sale held within the factory premises.
Typically, factory seconds have minor imperfections compared to the original piece and may not be fully finished. Imperfections may include internal bubbles, minor distortions, misaligned exterior icing, or missing finishing.
Pieces with serious flaws are directly discarded and never marketed as factory seconds.
The official factory seconds are not signed with the classic Daum markings but are engraved with this design.
A novice typically cannot identify the flaw that led to the item being sold at the factory shop rather than through the conventional sales channel.
Pedro Ramirez Vasquez for Daum Crystal Athena Cubist Torso Female Sculpture
circa 1970

