Nativity Sets: Gloria Angels

Markings Code: (A)=Diamond I, (B)=Hartland Molded, Hartland Wisc., (C)= Hartland Plastics Inc, Hartland Wisc., (NM)= Not Marked
Gloria Angels:
Most Nativity sets included a Gloria Angel, plus Hartland sold them individually at least for a period of time. This page shows most of the variations I know about at this time.
 
235-GA Large Gloria Angels:
Blue Gloria Angel - 235 Size: Mold Version 1:
This angel came to me in a 13 piece Soft Color Nativity Set. Interestingly, neither the Gloria Angel nor the other 12 figures were marked with Hartland's Diamond I imprint, common to many early Religious figures. The angel, infant and crib, and the bull were molded in flesh toned plastic as seen above. The first mold version of this set has a glued on crossbar, used in later sets to fasten the Angel to the Stable.
The lettering on the Blue Gloria Angel above is lightly engraved into the ribbon, with black paint in the lettering. Brian Blauch reports having an all white, large Gloria Angel that has a perfectly smooth ribbon, shown below.
Brian Blauch's Unusual Gloria Angel:
Brian has been a big help to this site, especially regarding the Religious figures. He sent me a note, letting me know about a Gloria Angel he shows on his site. "He wrote: I have a large angel that i've never seen anywhere else. it's an unpainted white angel, except for the wording on the banner. The banner is completely smooth, and the letters aren't raised or recessed. I bought it all by itself at a flea market years ago."

Brian Blauch's Site: Hartland Nativity Statues
In a follow up note, Brian added, "The banner is definitely smooth. The letters are painted in gold, and it's definitely hand done. The person had a very steady hand, and used the same "font", but you can tell it was done freehand. If you look at the exclamation point, you'll notice it's very large and at a strange angle compared to the indented version. Also, the letters are larger on the unpainted angel. Other than that, she is identical to my painted large angel....glued crossbar and Diamond I mark."
White Angel with a Tan Ribbon, Mold Version 1:
Sande Schneider, Marty Ohman, and Brian Blauch all report having a version of this Angel. The main section of the ribbon is painted a light tan color, with black painted into the lettering. It might be possible to find the same Angel with more white showing through on the main part of the ribbon, with more tan showing on the ends and folds.
The Gloria Angel below is my only other early style Large Angel. It is molded in white plastic with pink and light blue accents on the wings, along with a solid gold ribbon. The engraved lettering can be clearly seen in the photo above on the left. This angel has a Diamond I imprint on the back in the chest area. Otherwise, the mold imperfections on this angel are exactly the same as the Blue Gloria Angel above. This indicates Hartland added the Diamond I imprint to the existing mold.
White Plastic Gloria Angel - 235 Size- Version 1:
This shows the front and back of my white plastic Angel in the first version. The detail shots above them were taken of this set. There are no other numbers on the back side.

Sande Schneider owns a similar piece to the one above, however the center section of the ribbon is left unpainted, and the recessed letters are painted black, similar to the way they did it in the Blue Gloria Angel at the top of the page.
 
Painted White Gloria Angel - 235 Size- Version 2:
The angel above is from a different mold. The imperfections on the back side are completely different and has the two tabs on the back for the snap-on crossbar. Additionally, as seen in one of the detail shots below, this mold version is also marked with 235-GA and the lettering on this version is raised and in all-caps lettering. The Gloria Angel above came to me in a Seven Piece Nativity Set. It is painted white with gold, pink and baby blue paint. For additional reference, the Seven Piece set contained one of the cardboard stable backs with the very small lamp opening. (Probably a fairly early version of the stable)
White Plastic Gloria Angel - 235 Size- Version 2:
I have no clue how many different slight variations there are of these large Gloria Angels, but I suspect there are quite a few. The piece shown on the left was molded in opaque white plastic in the second mold style.

The (1955) Dealer Jobber sheet listed both a 235-GA Painted Gloria Angel, along with a 236-W White Gloria Angel. These pieces were sold individually and I suspect some were purchased as Christmas Tree decorations. I've often wondered why they didn't pursue that market more.
Detail Shots - 235 Size- Version 2:
The lettering on the second version is "raised" and in a plain block letterstyle in all caps. The second mold is also marked with GA235 on the inside on all four pieces I inspected.
Interestingly, of four large Gloria Angels I could inspect, two had NO Diamond I imprints, and two had four overlapping marks, as seen on the left. Again, the scratches and imperfections on all four were exactly the same, so it is apparent the four overlapping marks were added afterwards.
Deep Blue Gloria Angel- Version 2:
Normally, I try to get permission from an eBay seller to use a photo on this site. I simply can't remember if this seller said yes, so I will tentatively insert it here. (If you were the winner of the auction, or own one like it, please contact me). The lettering appears to be raised on this piece, and it has 10 wing sections. The smaller angel has one extra wing section, so I am fairly sure this is one of the second version, large Gloria Angels. The paint scheme is quite a bit different than the one a the top of the page. The one on the auction had a Christmas Tree hook still connected.
  
236-GA Small Gloria Angels:
4"Gloria Angels - 236 Size:
I own seven or eight of the small angels, and as far as I can tell, there was only one mold for this figure. It replaced the Large Gloria Angels on the Stable, although it is apparent it was available in white, in and around 1955, since it was listed in a separate category on the Dealer Jobber Price List. (Identified as 236-GA-W)
The small Gloria Angels are marked with a Diamond I under the crossbar, and also with a number 236 upside down near the feet. In contrast to the larger angels, the lettering on these were engraved into the ribbon using basically the same letterstyle as they did on the second version of the large angel.
236 White/Bisque Unpainted Angel
236 White Luminescent Angel
The small white Gloria Angel on the left came from an Unpainted Nativity Set. The piece on the right glows with a faint purple glow once it has been exposed to a bright light. I own a 4" White 3 Piece Nativity Set that also glows in the dark. The Dealer Jobber Price sheet does not mention the white pieces being luminscent. The small angels, when purchased separately, were probably used a Christmas Tree decorations, too.
  

Text & Photographs Copyright Mike Jackson 1998-2008
This page last modified Friday, October 19, 2007