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Antique Edwardian Filigree and Gros-Point Tapestry Bag
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Pre 1920 item# 691605
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Edwardian handbags often range to sensible sizes and yet they're also the prettiest purses ever made -- rich with exquisite needlework and such dressmaker details as seam cording and truly luxurious linings (like the heavy champagne silk-satin you see here), plus fittings of greater refinement than in any other period. It was a very brief era, just a few years, but it set an abiding standard of quality in purses and jewelry.
I don't open the private vault often, but have decided to let this fabulous bag -- a star of my own collection -- fly free into the Wider World. It's a purse you can carry not only for special evenings, but also by day without looking overdone. Its large size (9" x 10") is an important part of its versatility. Although the gilt filigree hardware is as jewel-like as you'd expect from an Edwardian evening bag, this isn't one of those precious teensy models made strictly for the cocktails-and-dancing circuit.
I hope the next owner of this treasure -- made even more exceptional by its near-mint condition -- will see that it gets a great deal more use than ever before. It's certainly meant for a lady who leads an interesting life. Provenance of the bag is an estate in Scotland and dating is circa 1905-1910. Both sides are identical, except in the color of a few stitches that authenticate hand-craftsmanship. Its chain handle, possibly not original since it's a bit sturdier than I'd expect (but the right color), is 20 inches long.
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Antique Art Nouveau Lady Portrait Cheese Knife c 1900
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Pre 1910 item# 689811
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This exquisite piece of antique cutlery, although technically a cheese knife, would also be a marvelous letter opener for display on your desk. Seven inches long, it has a graceful 3-inch scimitar blade and a gorgeous 4-inch handle about an inch thick, featuring gorgeous portrait heads on both sides. The Victorian beauties shown in profile are amid lots of scrolling floral and foliate detail, including the whiplash curves so typical of Art Nouveau design.
Besides being beautiful, this knife feels great in the hand -- perfectly shaped and weighted for pleasure in use.
That no marks are present signifies great age and, under high magnification, all surfaces show wear appropriate for a Victorian or Edwardian dating (circa 1895 - 1910). The intricate pattern of tiny scratches that gives antique silver its rich patina isn't visible to the naked eye, however. At a glance, the knife is in such fabulous shape that you'd almost mistake it for new. Thus, this is a very rare find, indeed.
About the metal composition, tarnish does lift off with polishing, so there's silver involved at least as plating. The blade seems to have been brightly polished recently, but yielded a little more tarnish when polish was applied. The handle hasn't been polished lately, so I left it alone, except to try a little polish on the outer edges. The experiment showed that it will brighten considerably all over, if you prefer that look. The handle's underlying metal may be pewter and the blade's steel -- or both might be silver of a sturdy, less than sterling grade. Testing with files and acids to find out for sure would be a sacrilege, given the amazing condition of the piece. It reached us from a Pennsylvania estate, but I expect it came from Europe.
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8 Antique Alfred B. Pearce Fern Dessert / Salad Plates
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Pre 1910 item# 634895
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This exquisite set of handpainted side plates with gold gilt rims originated in England circa 1900. The green-on-white design is enchanting, featuring layers of delicate fern fronds. Pale ferns recede into mysterious distance behind their brighter companions in the foreground.
Ferns were an extremely popular Victorian motif, as you know, most often executed in all-green majolica. If you happen to have a majolica serving piece, these plates would be perfect to use with it. They measure 7 3/4 inches round and 3/4 inch deep.
Each plate bears the hallmark of Alfred B. Pearce & Co., which even gives the company's address: 31 Ludgate Hill, London, EC1. Additional markings are the initial M in green (presumably the artist's initial), the number 5664 in red and, incised into the plates, a large D followed by a smaller 3. Their condition is lovely, showing only minor loss of gilding and a little stacking wear to the bases. There are the slight variations in color that you'd expect from handpainting.
Finding an 8-plate set complete after this long is, of course, rather rare. Adding to its collectibility, the maker's early work isn't plentiful. According to the Museum of London, which has a Pearce cup in its collection, the company operated from 1901 through the 1930s. These plates certainly date from before World War I -- most likely before 1910, as they're so classically Late Victorian/Edwardian in design.
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Exciting Tortoiseshell Pique Piano-Shaped Music Box
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Pre 1960 item# 563694
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Because it plays the charming Cole Porter tune "I Love Paris," which debuted in the 1953 musical "Can-Can", this gorgeous music box shaped like a grand piano can't be older than that. Even so, it's about 50 years old and of a type that won't ever be duplicated, so has assured investment value. Tortoiseshell has appreciated a lot since it became taboo in 1975 -- a great break for threatened hawksbill sea turtles, but disappointing for collectors of this marvelous substance prized by connoisseurs since ancient times. Its worth resides in its rich mottled colors -- translucent yellow dashed and spotted with brown -- and its very high sheen. The Romans veneered furniture with it and the Georgians and Victorians adored tortoiseshell piqué jewels inlaid with metals, mother-of-pearl and whatnot.
Tortoiseshell is actually a natural thermoplastic, so it softens when heated, making it easy to insert other materials; that's the process called piqué. You can tell the shell is genuine by the pattern of dots visible under magnification and by the absence of mold marks you'd see in modern plastic.
This treasure, obviously hand-made, holds irregular silver leaf forms and gold or gilt twisted wire. The music plays when you wind the key on the base and open the keyboard cover to reveal lovely keys of carved ivory or bone. You can also open the top, revealing a fine beveled mirror, the music works clad in a blue sueded box and a little niche just the size for a favorite few rings. Measuring about 6 inches long, 3.75 inches wide and 3 inches tall (or 6.5 inches when opened), it stands on three brass-tipped legs of intricately turned wood.
Condition is gorgeous, although we should take note of two flaws. The keyboard cover, which has a filament hinge on one side to activate the music, is missing something on the other side (hard to notice, but there's a teensy chip at the outer edge) and the broad side of the box is somewhat uneven. The latter is probably original to the piece, since it's quite a production to bring the various plates of a tortoise's carapace together and one wants to avoid any waste due to the high value.
This is a really remarkable item. I've seen no others like it, either before or after the English auction sale where we acquired it. My best guess on origin is France, where it may well have been produced as a special souvenir for tourists who'd enjoyed "Can-Can."
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Hand-Made Art Nouveau Silver Candlestick circa 1900
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Pre 1910 item# 551067
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Along with the flowing, organic lines of Art Nouveau, this graceful candlestick shows Arts and Crafts influence in the simplicity of its fabrication. To form the stylized calla flower at center, a sheet of silver was artfully wrapped, seamed and folded, while the engraved ivy leaves, each slightly different, were also cut from sheet silver. The curvy tendril that comprises the base is weightier (great for safety), so some other metal is inside the silver there. No marks are present, but the piece tarnishes and polishes like sterling. Its silver content has to be high.
Although acquired from a dealer in England, the candlestick originated in Continental Europe, I believe, because its measurements are inexact in inches. Height is a little more than 5 inches and width is a bit more than 5.5 inches; in centimeters, that would be 13 by 14. Based on style, France is the best suspect.
As you know if you collect Art Nouveau, authentic pieces are getting very hard to find. This is without a doubt the real thing, having been in my personal collection for decades, and it's a one-of-a-kind treasure since it wasn't factory-made. From every angle, it's stunningly sculptural.
Although at least a century old -- probably dating between 1895 and 1905 -- the candlestick is in lovely condition, showing just a few tiny dings and some tarnish and wax residue deep within the calla flower. I clean it only lightly, to preserve vestiges of age patina, but it will polish to a high shine if you prefer that look.
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Lovely Victorian Staffordshire Pink Roses Jardiniere
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Pre 1910 item# 550846
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Here's a jardinière to delight you, if you love roses, the color pink and richly detailed china. It's hard to capture in photographs, but this pot has loads of textural interest. Beads and wispy wavy patterns are worked in the clay, beneath those delicious glazes that look like raspberries and cream. The rose motif, painted on both sides, is so fine that sunlight seems to glow through the outer leaves. Both the base and upper edge are scalloped and there's copper lustre around the top.
Measuring 4 inches high and 4 1/2 inches across, this little beauty is in very nice condition, showing only age-appropriate crackling of the glaze, minor base wear and a little flaking on the lustred edge. You have to look closely to notice.
Unfortunately, this is the sole survivor of a set. Its larger mate broke on the journey from England and the maker mark was probably on the smashed one. As you know, it was quite common in Victorian times for makers not to put their names on every piece of a set. On this one, the base shows only a Staffordshire England stamp. Alas, I forgot to search through the shards of the other and haven't been able to identify the pattern yet. If you have a clue as to which Staffordshire pottery made this, please e-mail to tell me.
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Hammered and Silvered Jardiniere Planter 1905 - 1945
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Pre 1950 item# 505222
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The Neo-Classical rope twist ornament and fine Arts & Crafts workmanship of this lovely flower pot or planter argue for an Edwardian dating, as does the the absence of marks. Only because of its marvelous condition do I hesitate to call it that old. There was also a revival of interest in Neo-Classical forms for home decor in the 1940s, so it could be up to 40 years younger than it looks. However, it would be more likely marked by some company if made that late. Given that it came from England but measures precisely in inches, as opposed to centimeters, we can rule out its being more recent. Size is relatively generous: 6 inches in diameter and 4 1/4 inches tall.
Whether antique or merely vintage, this is a marvelous item, both decorative and useful. It's silvered so heavily that you really don't notice wear to the finish, except at the very bottom of the interior, which is amazing for a piece of this type. Even some of that wear, apparently revealing underlying brass, may just be tarnish, since I polished only lightly.
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Art Nouveau Gilt Bronze Lizard on Leaf Sculpture c1880
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Pre 1900 item# 410402
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The Victorian keeness for gardening extended to the creatures of the natural world, with the result that reptiles and insects were highly popular forms for 19th century jewels and home adornments. A prime example of the latter - executed in the sinuous Art Nouveau manner - is this finely detailed bronze lizard on an exquisitely modeled leaf. He's so lifelike that you can feel him watching you with great alertness. Unlike most of our other ornamental antique bronzes, this one is so good it deserves the "fine art" designation.
A pleasure to stroke as well as to look at, this delightful little sculpture, measures about 6 1/4 inches long and 2 1/2 inches at its widest. A signature could well be present beneath the heavy patina on reverse, but I haven't found it. Probable origin is France or England, where we acquired the piece. It likely dates from the 1880s, since Art Nouveau influence is evident, but not florid in the 1890s manner. Condition, is superb.
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Enchanting Yellow Victorian Majolica Plate - Fan Motif
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Pre 1900 item# 406025
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The most feminine and drop-dead beautiful piece of Majolica I've ever owned, this antique plate features blue, white and dusky rose fans, cherry blossoms, butterflies and a dragonfly against a happy yellow basketweave pattern edged with bamboo. It's been a star of my personal collection for at least 15 years and, now that I'm simplifying, the time has come for someone else to love it as I have. Acquired while I was living in England, it's presumably European and certainly from the 19th century. The Renaissance art of Majolica-making was revived in the early 1850s and Oriental motifs appeared about a decade later. Thus, probable dating of this plate is circa 1865-1890. Relatively few pieces have maker marks, so their lack has minimal impact on value. I'm far from a china specialist, but a lady who's selling her cakestand of the same pattern elsewhere online (for $375 plus shipping) saw an S under the glaze and speculated that the maker may have been Shorter. However, this looks nothing like the more rigid and restrained fan design normally associated with his firm (a pity since those plates are now selling as high as $975).
One other plate like this is currently offered online without attribution for $275 plus shipping. Ours is priced lower in deference to a few small problems: a chip out of the rim on the base, a couple of tiny ones under the edge, a little loss of surface finish and an area of old restoration near the edge. The flaws are hard to spot, with so much going on, but naturally they have to be disclosed. (Actually I never noticed the restored bit before going over the piece with a magnifying glass today.) There's also the fine overall age-crazing we expect, most visible on the fans. Condition issues, if not severe, are of less interest to most Majolica collectors than the charm of the design and fresh glaze colors.
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Fine Bronze Art Nouveau Sculptural Lady Tray, 1890s
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Pre 1900 item# 405240
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Shaped like a feather fan and featuring a reclining Victorian beauty in very high relief, this is an exceedingly beautiful and feminine vanity, table or desk accessory. It's a heavy piece and its size is quite generous for a trinket tray - 6.5 x 5 inches, rising on two half-inch feet to a total height of 1.5 inches at the back. Upper side is lightly polished, showing patina in crevices, while the back shows rich overall patina and traces of gilt. Condition, as you see, is lovely, with no flaws I can find. Dating could be as early as 1880s, based on the sculptural style and the fact that the lady is dressed. Likely origin is French, although the tray was acquired in England.
Enjoy this treasure to display your favorite jewels, keep keys handy, serve sweets or hold your business cards at the office.
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