lot 9 high quality machine made marbles 2 superman $58.00 Buy It Now for only: $58.00 Buy It Now

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Marbles Awesome Vintage Akro Agate Superman Cork Shooter 13 16 Wet Mint $23.50 (6 Bids) Bid now

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OLD BLUE AKRO AGATE PELTIER SUPERMAN SPIDERMAN AVENTURINE MARBLE GLASS PORCELAIN $149.50 Buy It Now for only: $149.50 Buy It Now

Old Corksrew Marble 13 16 Akro Superman $4.99 Bid now

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SWEET MINT 5 8 + PELTIER SUPERMAN MARBLES $9.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

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MARBLES 9 JABO HILLBILLY MAGIC 2003 SUPERMAN RUN EARLY CLASSICS SWIRLS $5.99 Bid now

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KEITH BAKER MARBLE BIG END OF DAY CRYSTAL SUBMARINE ONIONSKIN CLOUD LUTZ STAND $20.00 (1 Bid) Bid now

RARE Mint CREAM of the CROP Peltier Submarine Whisps LK $9.99 Bid now

KEITH BAKER HANDMADE MARBLE WILD THING STRANGE ATTRACTOR SUBMARINE RIBBON AGATE $14.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now | Bid now

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Antique Handmade Sulfide Marble German 13 Sulphide Fish Rare Aquatic animal $56.51 (12 Bids) Bid now

1 3 8 Marble Aaron Slater Ocean World with Jelly Fish $40.00 Buy It Now for only: $40.00 Buy It Now

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GOING FISHING PISSSSS ON WORK ADVERTISING LOGO MARBLE $5.95 Buy It Now for only: $5.95 Buy It Now

1 1 8 Marble Mike Edmondson Fish Murrines and Swirls $30.00 Buy It Now for only: $30.00 Buy It Now

tbg Glass Clown fish reef flower marble hand made art gift 5 5 $3.00 Bid now

RARE ANTIQUE GERMAN SULPHIDE MARBLE w CRANE EATING FISH $300.00 Buy It Now for only: $300.00 Buy It Now

2 1 8 Marble Zero Gravity Fish Pop Art Marble $75.00 Buy It Now for only: $75.00 Buy It Now

2 1 2 Marble Cathy Richardson Gold Fish in Coral Reef $185.00 Buy It Now for only: $185.00 Buy It Now

QTY 1 Clown Fish Shooter Boulder Marble Brand New D79 $2.49 Buy It Now for only: $2.49 Buy It Now

2 1 2 Marble Mark Matthews Precision Fish Scale Equadorial Geometric $495.00 Buy It Now for only: $495.00 Buy It Now

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15 16 Marble Mike Edmondson Fish Murrines and Latticinio Marble $30.00 Buy It Now for only: $30.00 Buy It Now

2 3 8 Glass Marble Mark Matthews Puleto Pole Fish Scale Geometric $450.00 Buy It Now for only: $450.00 Buy It Now

PISS ON WORK IM GOIN FISHING LOGO ON WHITE MARBLE $3.75 Buy It Now for only: $3.75 Buy It Now

3 1 8 Marble C Richardson Pink Sea Anemone Fish $800.00 Buy It Now for only: $800.00 Buy It Now

1 3 4 Marble John Gilvey Yellow Fantail Fish Marble $150.00 Buy It Now for only: $150.00 Buy It Now

WARNING FISHING POX LOGO COLLECTOR MARBLE $3.75 Buy It Now for only: $3.75 Buy It Now

1 1 8 Marble Jesse Taj Two Sailboat Fish Murrines $60.00 Buy It Now for only: $60.00 Buy It Now

3 Marble Cathy Richardson Clown Fish Marble $750.00 Buy It Now for only: $750.00 Buy It Now

1 3 4 Marble Gilvey Fantail Fish Marble $195.00 Buy It Now for only: $195.00 Buy It Now

1 3 4 Marble Mark Matthews Geometric Fractured Symetric Fish Scales $325.00 Buy It Now for only: $325.00 Buy It Now

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The Christensen Agate Company was started in 1925 in Payne, Ohio...

What really set The Christensen Agate Company apart from any other marble company that ever existed was the use of exotic glass colors.

The Christensen Agate Company

Keep a Close Eye on Guinea Marbles.

CAC CHRISTENSEN AGATE OPAQUE DIAPER FOLD LAVENDER VINTAGE MARBLES MARBLE GAME $35.00 Bid now

CAC CHRISTENSEN AGATE OPAQUE Turquoise BRICK VINTAGE MARBLES MARBLE GREEN SWIRL $5.00 (1 Bid) Bid now

Marble book Christensen Akro Agate Peltier Master MORE $15.25 Buy It Now for only: $15.25 Buy It Now

VINTAGE CHRISTENSEN TWO COLOR SWIRL MARBLE 5 8 $9.99 Bid now

Marbles AWESOME VINTAGE CAC CHRISTENSEN AGATE FLAME SWIRL MARBLE 11 16 $29.99 (3 Bids) Bid now

Marbles VINTAGE CHRISTENSEN AGATE CAC or ALLEY AGATE FLAME SWIRL MARBLE 5 8 $9.99 Bid now

Marbles VINTAGE CAC CHRISTENSEN AGATE STRIPED OPAQUE MARBLE 11 16 $29.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

Early Machine Marble Book Agate Christensen $22.45 Buy It Now for only: $22.45 Buy It Now

Christensen Agate Co Awesome Turkey Pattern Marble Glass Cullet examples $6.45 Bid now

MARBLESCHRISTENSENAKROPELTIERSLAGS AND MORE27 MARBLES TAKE A LOOK $9.99 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Christensen Marble King and More Various Sizes $1.75 Bid now

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Marbles have always been popular toys. However, what some may not know is that glass marbles weren’t always the norm. Early marbles, which are highly sought after by antique toy collectors, were actually made from clay and were often referred to as Bennington marbles.

Bennington marbles are those that were glazed and made of crockery or stoneware.

Bennington Marbles - The Antiques Bible

Bennington marbles are a type of glazed clay marble. They are not very dense. The marbles are fired clay with a salt glaze on them. Benningtons are readily identifiable by both their coloring and the little 'eyes' that they have on them. These are spots where the marbles were touching each other while they were being fired, resulting in those spots being uncolored and unglazed. The term 'bennington' is actually a misnomer. There is no evidence that they were ever made in Bennington, Vermont, or that they have any lineage to the Bennington pottery that they resemble and from which they get their name. It appears that all Bennington marbles were imported from Germany.

Handmade Non-Glass Marbles

Marbles Huge Bennington Old Antique Handmade Clay Rare Owl Eyes Marble $10.00 (1 Bid) Bid now

20 ANTIQUE MARBLES GERMAN GLASS SWIRL BENNINGTON CLAY OLD TIME TOY COLLECTION NR $19.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

14 BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE BENNINGTON MARBLES GERMAN RICH BLUE BROWN COLORS NICE SIZES $9.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A214 $1.75 (3 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A215 $4.54 (6 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A216 $3.58 (5 Bids) Bid now

ANTIQUE BLUE BENNINGTON MARBLE FOUND BY ACCIDENT IN OLD YARD $12.99 Bid now

MARBLES COLLECTOR KIT 2 ANTIQUE CAGED CORE BENNINGTON AKRO MORE $77.00 (10 Bids) Bid now

21 ANTIQUE MARBLES LUTZ LATTICINO CORE BENNINGTON $50.99 (11 Bids) Bid now

13 16 INCH BLUE BENNINGTON MARBLE $10.04 Bid now

13 16 INCH BROWN BENNINGTON MARBLEWITH EYES $10.04 Bid now

5 8 INCH BROWN BENNINGTON MARBLEWITH EYES $10.04 Bid now

1 4 INCH PEEWEE BROWN BENNINGTON MARBLEWITH EYES $10.04 Bid now

3 8 INCH PEEWEE BROWN BENNINGTON MARBLE $10.04 Bid now

MARBLESGERMAN HANDMADE BENNINGTON LOT 27 MARBLES NO RESERVE WOW $9.99 Bid now

Vintage Marbles Old Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Lot B607 $6.00 (8 Bids) Bid now

Happy Valentines Day Ceramic Sack Full Of Vintage Marbles Bennington Peltier Vi $10.51 (6 Bids) Bid now

Vintage Marbles Old Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Lot B629 $5.50 (5 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot B217 $3.25 (3 Bids) Bid now

ANTIQUE TOY BENNINGTON POTTERY GLASS MARBLE TOTAL 64 $10.50 (4 Bids) Bid now

Antique Handmade German Marble HUGE Blue Bennington Clay Pottery Marble 131 $16.01 (7 Bids) Bid now

MARBLES 1 7 16 HUGE ANTIQUE BENNINGTON MINT $0.99 Bid now

19 ANTIQUE BROWN BENNINGTON MARBLES Tiny Peewee 13 32 to Big Shooters 7 8 $15.00 Bid now

Marbles Bennington Br Bl White Produced In Germany Antique Various Sizes $4.95 (1 Bid) Bid now

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Marbles NM+ 13 16 Glazed China $0.99 (2 Bids) Bid now

BIG 5 HANDPAINTED ANTIQUE CHINA MARBLES $9.99 Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A214 $1.75 (3 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A215 $4.54 (6 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot A216 $3.58 (5 Bids) Bid now

10 Antique Stone China marbles Highly Collectable Largest China Helix is 89 $13.50 Buy It Now for only: $15.50 Buy It Now | Bid now

contemporary handmade glazed china marbles nice size $9.95 Bid now

1 1 4 Marble Tom Thornburgh Glazed Porcelain China $35.00 Buy It Now for only: $35.00 Buy It Now

Vintage Marbles Old Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Lot B607 $6.00 (8 Bids) Bid now

Antique Marbles Handmade w Clay China Crockery Lot of 30 B223 $8.50 (6 Bids) Bid now

Vintage Marbles Old Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Lot B629 $5.50 (5 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Antique Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mix Marble Lot B217 $3.25 (3 Bids) Bid now

MARBLESGERMAN HAND MADE CHINA GLAZEDUNGLAZED HELIXAND BULLSEYES NO RESERVE $9.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

NG old german hand made marbles china $9.95 Bid now

Antique Vintage Large China Clay Marbles Line Crockery Carpet Ball Bullseye $19.99 Bid now

NG old german hand made china marble $17.12 (3 Bids) Bid now

NG old german hand made china marble $10.45 (2 Bids) Bid now

3 4 Antique Unglazed Porcelain China RARE Geometric Cross Hatch Style $50.00 Buy It Now for only: $50.00 Buy It Now

5 8 Antique Handpaint Cross Hatch Design Unglazed China Marble RARE c1890 $40.00 Buy It Now for only: $40.00 Buy It Now

2 SWEET ANTIQUE GERMANY PORCELAIN CHINA HAND PAINTED STRIPED MARBLES $1.83 (2 Bids) Bid now

HANDMADE Rare Glazed CHINA MARBLE Small Old Vintage Marbles Agate N MINT $0.99 Bid now

TWO OLD HANDMADE CHINA MARBLES 9 16 11 16 $5.00 (1 Bid) Bid now

Marbles Old Vintage Clay Handmade Bennington China Crockery Mixed Lot C421 $1.04 (2 Bids) Bid now

EARLY RARE 5 8 BANDED SHAMROCK DESIGN DECORATED UNGLAZED CHINA MARBLE $24.99 Bid now

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You still want to have marbles to play with though. Take a break from collecting and play with marbles.

Here are a few you would not worry about protecting and preserving:

FS-USA/Mega Marbles New Generation Marble Set List Price: $11.99 Sale Price: $8.66 You save: $3.33 (28%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours See Reviews For This Product

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The name of the company was derived from that of Vitrolite. Vitro comes from the Latin and means “in glass”. The Vitrolite Company made heavyweight architectural glass. Fisher’s initial plan involved using Vitrolite cullet to make the marbles and Vitro’s early marble style names were plays on the Vitrolite name: Clear-Lites, Du-Lites and Tri-Lites.

Vitro Agate

The Vitro Agate company operated 1932 - 1993. The company made mostly Patches, Cats-Eyes. Parrots are one of the most interesting and colorful marbles it produced.

6 ANTIQUE VITRO CAT EYES 10 CENT MARBLES IN PACKAGE $9.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

Marbles Mint 37 64 Vitro Agate Easter Egg $12.27 (6 Bids) Bid now

Marbles NM 27 32 Vitro Agate Bumblebee $8.48 (5 Bids) Bid now

Marbles Mint 39 64 Vitro Agate Cosmic Rainbow $1.25 (2 Bids) Bid now

Marbles NM 5 8 Vitro Agate Tri Lite $0.99 Bid now

Marbles Vitro Tiger Eye Box New Box $29.22 (6 Bids) Bid now

One Cool Wet Mint 5 8 Vitro Agate Hybrid Cateye Cedarman7 Vintage Marbles $1.54 (2 Bids) Bid now

Gladding Vitro 60 count bag of Chinese Checkers marbles in original bag vintage $4.99 Bid now

Gladding Vitro 4 of 8 Aqua Jewels marbles in original bag vintage $2.99 Bid now

SIGNED Box of JABO VITRO LAWN CHAIR MARBLES 3 4 Marbles Marble unopen $9.99 Bid now

Vintage Gladding Vitro 7 8 Patch Shooter Marbles in Original Bag L931 $15.00 Bid now

Vintage Gladding Vitro 7 8 Patch Shooter Marbles in Original Bag L930 $15.00 Bid now

Vintage Gladding Vitro 5 8 Patch Marbles in Original Bag L929 $49.00 Bid now

ONE MINT 5 8 VITRO AGATE $3.00 Bid now

MARBLESVINTAGE MACHINEMADE 100+ AKRO PELTS MASTER VITRO JABO MARBLE KING $0.99 (1 Bid) Bid now

MARBLESVINTAGE MACHINEMADE 100+ AKRO PELTS MASTER VITRO JABO MARBLE KING $0.99 Bid now

VINTAGE MARBLES VITRO CONQUEROR MARLBES Lots of colors $5.99 Bid now

MARBLES LOT 25 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 5 OF 5 MIXED VITRO AGATES NM TO NM+ $5.00 Buy It Now for only: $5.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 23 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 29 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 21 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER JABO NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 28 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER JABO NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

MARBLES LOT 27 OF 23 MIXED MARBLES ALLEY AKRO VITRO PELTIER NM TO MINT $20.00 Buy It Now for only: $20.00 Buy It Now

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Raw Materials

Modern marbles are made from a combination of sand, soda lime, silica, and several other ingredients added for pigment or decoration. These other additives range from aluminum hydrate to zinc oxide. The primary component, sand, is essentially loose, granular particles of disintegrated rock. Soda lime is the chemical term for the mixture of calcium hydroxide and sodium or potassium hydroxide. It is a drying agent and absorbs carbon dioxide. Another compound used in marble manufacturing is silica, a white or colorless crystalline found in agate, flint, quartz, and other rocks. Some marbles are also made from cullet, or scrap glass.

The Manufacturing
Process

Meltdown

•Sand, soda lime, and crushed cullet are fed into a large, furnace-driven tank. In the tank, the mixture is heated to 2300°F (1260°C) to melt the raw materials. This can take as long as 28 hours.
Injection

•Next, the molten mixture moves out of the tank through an opening into another vat known as the flow tank. There an opening in the tank injects molten colored glass. This hot, pigmented glass gives the marbles their distinct appearance. A green marble has been injected with glass containing iron oxide; cobalt results in a blue marble; and manganese will yield a purple one. The use of uranium oxide gives marbles an eerie, greenish-yellow cast. The speed and force of the injection determines the final design of the marble. A grooved feeder device, patented by the Akro Agate Company, was able to produce multicolored marbles known as corkscrews.
Cutting and cooling

•Next, the still-molten glass is released from the flow tank as globs of glass. Automatic cutting devices slice the mixture into equal parts. The globs travel down metal ramps that simultaneously cool them and perfect their spherical shape. Next, they travel down a second metal slide and are sorted by hand. These grooved rollers were the invention of Horace Hill, a former employee of Christensen and Son and later founder of Akro Agate. This device produced marbles much more quickly and reduced the labor necessary by nearly two-thirds. Marbles with flaws are sent back to another area of the factory for re-melting. The marbles cool off in 5-gallon (19 1) containers that house 5,000 marbles at a time.

Marble Information from Answers.com