Very nice size, measuring 2 5/8 wide and 2 1/8" high, good weight. Stamped 980 on back, with Made in Mexico, no maker's mark. Likely Taxco work, and the 980 silver standard was used in earlier works, prior to 1950. The face mask depicts a warrior with headdress, ear spools, and facial adornment, a pre-columbian image often found in Mexican art and jewelry. Has visible tarnish, especially in recessed areas, and shows wear and abrasions to silver surface...

It is a rare occurrence to find a Margot de Taxco ring - some designs do crop up from time to time but to come upon her "yin and yang" design no 5170 is quite a strike of luck! Out of her enamel creations, I have to admit that this is one of my favorite not only because of the "balanced" motif but mainly because of the soul-soothing colors it comes in...

Fine Thai 13th - 15th Century Celadon Stoneware Jar (Ex. Grahame Clarke Collection)

This attractively-shaped jar, or bottle, was made during the 13th - 15th centuries at the Sawankhalok kilns. It is coated in a finely-crackled translucent celadon glaze that falls short of the base revealing the stoneware body that has fired to a reddish-brown. There are bands of incised lines around the shoulder for decoration and two small loop handles...

Mystery maker solved - see below. Resembling some Macefield free form Jewelry, hand wrought by a contemporary of same, who worked not far from Macefield maker's William Mason and Leonard Field, in North Shore Saugus, MA.
41 grams of sterling silver! This completely bench made free form necklace stamped: Sterling A. C. K. -see image 2, is by a now deceased Boston area jewelry artist and book illustrator. Info included with order.
Weighs 1.4 oz or 41 grams...

Dashing early modernist Mexican silver and amethyst earrings with the signature of the Los Ballesteros workshop, this set is a variation on the "clamshell" type of jewelry that was so popular with modernist Taxco maestros in the mid- to later 1940s...

Large Chinese Ming Dynasty Blue & White Crackle-Glazed Dish (32.5 cm)

This large blue & white "Swatow" (or "Zhangzhou") porcelain dish was made in the 16th / 17th century, most likely during the Wanli Reign (1573 - 1620) of the Ming Dynasty. It is "heavily-potted" and coated in a heavily-crackled glaze. The upper surface is decorated in underglaze blue with peonies within thin blue bands. The underside is simply decorated with circular blue bands...

Wonderful champagne ice bucket, or "seau" circa 1950's/60's, from France. To advertise their product, champagne houses would give these buckets to restaurants as a point of sale item, they were not sold. This bucket was never circulated - it is NOS (new old stock). Marked "Duminy" in enamel, "Champagne" & "Ay" Nice rolled handles. Chrome over brass; measures 8" tall 7-3/4" across.

Pair of .800 silver dishes with fierce dragons and other insect or sea creature, on a stipled background, the edge decorated with stamped arrow designs. Both are marked on the front and on the side with the .800 silver standard mark...

An attractive Chinese cloisonne opium container. Three polychrome enamel cloisonne decorated sections - two with butterflies and flowers flanking a larger central section with longevity symbols including the Shou character. The three sections and top joined by four paktong bands and bottom. The top silver plated brass with repousse silver alloy panel with treasures decoration joined metallurgically to cover. Some distress and light loss to enamel. Height 2 3/4 inches. Length, 3 1/4 inches...

I don’t usually venture into the 1980s with vintage Mexican silver jewelry but Erika Hult de Corral is one of the few instances in which the general rule is broken. A Paris-educated, talented modernist with a distinct brutalist strain in her designs, Ric (as she signs her pieces) worked with Sigi Pineda and Enrique Ledesma before she opened her own workshop...

Thelma Deutsch's little guy is up to all kinds of monkeyshines! You can see it in his beautiful great big eyes. Frankly, he is adorable. Silver-colored metal, very three dimensional. Thelma Deutsch signature on the back. He is 1 3/4" wide and 2 1/4" tall.

Biomorphic sterling silver appliques on a highly oxidized "puffy" background take center-stage in this modernist Mexican set of Salvador Teran earrings. I grew up close to the sea so to my eyes, it's little crabs catching a bit of sun on mossy beach pebbles that are pictured here but your mind's eye might see something entirely different. Precious like all Salvador jewelry, beautifully made, not entirely identical as is the case with hand-wrought pieces of wearable art...

Probably my favorite among the Taxco modernists, Salvador Teran has that magic touch which allows him to draw a perfectly "readable" picture with the least amount of strokes. His work is inspired and his ability to deal with different materials and always create wearable pieces of art is simply unbelievable. In this set of abstract earrings my eyes see the figures of two birds...

This small vintage tin box from France has the most wonderful graphics. The colors are rich & images are adorable. Some minor scratches, wear & dents throughout, but nothing to detract from the charm of this French tinware box. Marked "Ducasse & Guibal", "D.G.", "Nantes" and "F. Vinatie Bordeaux." Measures approximately 6 inches long x 1-1/2 inches high x 2-1/2 inches wide.

A 10k garnets halo ring with a split band from the 1960s. This size 7 ring features a central 1.35 carat (calculated) cherry red garnet surrounded by a halo circle of 14 smaller garnets...

A 10k smoky gold smoky topaz ring. This vintage size 5-3/4 ring features a claw-set 18 carat (calculated) round faceted smoky topaz stone. This ring weighs 6.2 grams, it measures 5/8" across the stone, it is stamped LIDO 10K, and it is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, dents, bends, corrosion, losses, damage or repairs. All items are thoroughly and conservatively graded and all condition issues are noted; all items are vintage or antique and may have slight signs of gentle use. ...

A nice quality vintage sterling silver hinged bracelet with a natural hand-carved shell portrait cameo c1900-20. This bangle bracelet (unmarked but tested as sterling) measures 2-1/2" x 2-1/8" across the interior and it is 3/4" across the cameo. It has a safety chain and a box clasp and it weighs 10.7 grams. This item is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, bends, corrosion, losses, damage or repairs other than a small 1/16" dent below the hinge. All items are thoroughly and conser...

English Art Nouveau style sterling silver teaspoon by A.E. Jones, Birmingham, 1928. Length: 5.25 inches. Excellent condition. This handwrought spoon has a hammered spade-shaped bowl and a pierced, figural foliate finial. Fully hallmarked on the reverse of the bowl. Excellent condition with no damage or repairs. Legible hallmarks. A scarce little spoon.