Midcentury Modern sterling silver toothpick holder. Made by Alphonse La Paglia (d. 1953) in New Jersey. Drum-form with double-banded mouth rim. Spread base applied with cast band comprising alternating leafing scrolls and flowerheads. Fully marked including maker’s stamp and no. 160. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 2 x D 2 in. Weight: 3.8 troy ounces. #BY921
Midcentury Modern sterling silver toothpick holder. Made by Alphonse La Paglia (d. 1953) in New Jersey. Drum-form with double-banded mouth rim. Spread base applied with cast band comprising alternating leafing scrolls and flowerheads. Fully marked including maker’s stamp and no. 160. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 2 x D 2 in. Weight: 4 troy ounces. #BY920
Midcentury Modern sterling silver centerpiece bowl. Made by Alphonse La Paglia (d. 1953) in New Jersey. Deep and tapering with flared rim. Raised foot with short support in the bead and ring arrangement that proved influential with other American silversmiths. Fully marked including maker’s stamp and no. 116. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 5 1/4 x D 10 1/8 in. Heavy weight: 33.3 troy ounces. #BZ270
Midcentury Modern sterling silver water pitcher. Made by Alphonse La Paglia (d. 1953) in New Jersey. Baluster with asymmetrical oval mouth; stepped and round foot ring with flat beading. High-looping handle wrapped with abstract leaves; scroll terminal inset with Jensen-inspired seed-spilling pod on wire stem. The influence of the master applied to a traditional form. Marked “La Paglia Sterling 208”. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 9 x W 7 1/4 x D 6 in. Heavy weight: 39 troy ounces. #BY...
Alexandria sterling silver bread and butter plates. Made by Fisher Silversmiths in Jersey City, New Jersey. Each: Round well and concave shoulder interspersed with 4 open leafing tendrils mounted to cutout triangles. Fully marked including maker’s stamp, pattern name, and no. 2646. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 1/4 x D 6 5/8 in. Total weight: 47 troy ounces. #BY647
Lovely sterling silver keepsake box. Rectangular with straight sides. Cover hinged and tabbed. Cover top has engraved border with dense and overlapping flowers and leaves. Stained-wood bottom, lining, and partition. Cover interior has rectangular tablet (vacant). Hallmarked “sterling silver”. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 1 3/4 x W 7 x D 3 3/8 in. Gross weight: 11 troy ounces. #BQ281
Swiss Biedermeier silver chafing dish, 19 C. Round with gently curved sides and molded rim. Handle faceted stained wood. Beading. Cover gently raised with naïve-style flower head finial. Marked. Very good condition. Handle has minor chip.
Overall dimensions: H 6 1/2 x W 14 x D 8 in. Gross weight: 40 troy ounces. #BT943
The term “tenmoku” (heavens eye) refers both to a shape of tea bowl popularized in the Song Dynasty dating back almost 1,000 years, and also to a style of glaze that these pieces are renowned for. In the case of tea bowls themselves, the troughs often have darker coloration with radiating colored rays and, depending on the style, often resemble the iris of a human eye. In the case of the glaze, the individual oil spots that appear on the walls of the vessel can sometime also rese...
Being based in Kyoto we occasionally come across fine Chinese and Korean tea-ware to mix in with our Japanese offerings. Here we have an example of a ceremonial tea bowl from the Shinragi kiln in Korea. Pieces like the one seen here are baked in a traditional wood-fired “climbing kiln” at a temperature of over 1,300 degrees for 5 days. Fashioned after classical works held in museum collections, the motifs are timeless and captivating.
In excellent condition, this piece is 5.5 in...
Born the second son of Ryônyû, the 10th Raku Kichizaemon Tannyû took over the family kiln in 1811 at the age of 16 and served until his retirement and subsequent handing on of the title of Kichizaemon to his son-in-law Keinyû some 34 years later. Retaining many of the unique stylistic innovations of his father including his clay trimming technique, Tannyû went on to establish several new family kilns and to produce wares for both 10th and 11th Tokugawa Lords. The piece seen here is a classi...
Edwardian Art Nouveau sterling silver picture frame. Made by William Aitken in Birmingham in 1905. Rectangular window in shaped scrolled surround mounted to stained wood with hinged support. Chased Japonesque ornament—cranes, cattails, and lily pads in rippling water—as well as whiplash tendrils. The perfect showcase for a free-spirited boho forebear. Fully marked. Very good condition.
Dimensions: Frame: H 12 1/2 x W 10 1/4 in. Window: H 7 3/4 x W 6 in. #BS115 & BS116
English gilt sterling silver & agate fruit set. This set comprises 24 pieces: 12 knives and 12 forks. Each: Tapering and chamfered rectilinear handle in mottled and translucent agate. Colors vary. Gilt sterling silver blades with 2 armorials (knives) and 4-tined shanks with 1 armorial (forks); stippled and scrolled mount. In stained-wood case with fitted velvet.
Fully marked with London assay stamp. Eight knives have William Theobalds maker’s stamp and 1833 date letter. Four knives have Wil...
Set of 4 Victorian sterling silver place card holders. Made by Saunders and Shepherd in Chester in 1899. Each: A rifle is propped against a shilling coin dated 1899, the year war broke out in South Africa between the British and Dutch colonial settlements. The rifle is the famous Lee-Metford, which was by then a tad old fashioned, but still considered reliable by British as well as Dutch troops, who made use of captured specimens. Open lunette base with vertical support. Fully marked including d...
George V sterling silver picture frame. Made by Docker & Burn Ltd in Birmingham in 1923. Rectangular window in flat cutout curvilinear shaped surround. A simplified postwar Edwardian design. With glass, silk lining, and wood back and hinged easel support. Very good condition. Wear and warping to wood.
Dimensions: Frame: H 10 1/2 x W 8 1/2 in. Window: H 8 x W 6 in. #BY909
With a base of dazzling red ochre clay, a technique known as “san-giri,” pioneered by the progenitor of this generational potting family and now widely used among Bizen potters, is employed here to bring out stunning mustard yellows, mossy greens, charcoal blacks, along with a range of subtler hues.
The potter, Konishi Tōko II (1927 -2018) was second daughter to Konishi the first. After graduating from women’s college she assisted her father at the family kiln, e...
Art Deco 950 silver ice bucket. Made by Tetard Freres in Paris, ca 1930. Trapezoidal with applied rim and two rectangular supports mounted to stained-wood. Sides gently convex with fashionable skyscraper motif. Fully marked with Minerva head and maker’s mark. Very good condition.
Dimensions: H 5 1/4 x W 6 5/8 x D 5 3/4 in. Gross weight: 24 troy ounces. #BN222
Victorian Georgian Queen sterling silver soup ladle. Made by John and Henry Lias in London in 1839. King-shaped handle has engraved armorial with sword-bearing lion rampant and motto “Courage”. Deep ovoid bowl. A substantial and traditional piece made shortly after young Victoria ascended the throne. Stylistic continuity in the new reign. Fully marked. Very good condition.
Height: H 13 3/8 in. Heavy weight: 12 troy ounces. #BV250
German 800 silver wine trolly nef, ca 1920. A 3-mast galleon with billowing sales and complicated rigging. Gun ports open and cannons ready to fire. Lots of deck action, too with fighting swordsman and fallen sailors. Holds a special cargo because wood-style hull is a wine trolly. Figurehead spigot with threaded plug, and dolphin side mounts with rotating wheels for cruising across the table. Gives new meaning to the expression “getting sloshed”. Memorable dinner party guaranteed.
Hana...