Fairing Figurine - The last in bed to put out the light, German, late Nineteenth Century
Price: £25The various figures were made in white glazed porcelain with coloured decoration. The compositions were sculptural and often accompanied by an inscription, as here. Many models are known. Two typical examples are 'Returning from the Ball' and 'Twelve Months after Marriage' but the most common example is represented here 'The last in bed to put out the light'. A couple are seen climbing into a covered bed at the foot of which stands a candle in a holder. These candles are usually broken off, most likely because of simple damage over the years but it has been suggested that this was done deliberately for good luck.
Some of the fairing figurines are marked, as here. The impressed number '2851' comes from the first series of figures produced by the Conta factory with numbers ranging from 2850 to 2899. The earlier examples do not have the shield mark found on most of the pieces which indicates an earlier dating here, more towards the middle of the nineteenth century.
Fairings have been collectors' items for many years now and still hold a naif charm which makes them appealing display items, with a history of their own.
Pair of Indian Bronze and Enamel Candlesticks in the form of Cobras, early 20th century
Price: £45These snake form candlesticks were a popular form with the Indian manufacturers of decorative metal items for export in during the 1920s and 1930s. The design is striking and their appeal is obvious. The form was also produced as plain brass but the combination here of gilt metal and red enamel is far more attractive.
Tunbridge Ware Brush or Pen Box circa 1900
Price: £25Tunbridge Ware is named after its place of manufacture which was Tunbridge Wells in Kent, although similar pieces were made in the neighbouring town of Tonbridge. The decoration typically consists of a mosaic of many very small pieces of different coloured woods. All the pieces were made from natural wood and about forty different varieties were used; even the green colour seen here is from natural wood being "green oak" which is produced by the action of fungus on fallen oak. It was produced in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries but the most famous makers worked between 1830 and 1900. A wide range of articles were produced, many of which were bought as souvenirs by visitors to Tunbridge Wells, and the shapes included cribbage boards, writing slopes and boxes of various forms. This piece was most likely intended to contain brushes or pens and might have accompanied a writing box in the same style Dating is most likely towards the end of the ninetenth century after which production gradually ceased as the craftsmen became scarce and fashions changed.
Circular Glass Panel depicting a Chinoiserie Scene, Hotelier Limited, Leeds, England, 1960s
Price: £30Cherry amber Bakelite necklace 1920s
Price: £125Exceptional strand of Scottish Moss agate beads
Price: £45Native American turquoise cuff bracelet, 1960s
Price: £225Outstanding Suede Lanvin Clutch in original box 1950s
Price: £250Framed Stumpwork Panel depicting a Bowl of Flowers, English, 1930s
Price: £351950s Regency style needlepoint kit bag
Price: £75Biomorphic Form Purple glass Bowl, European possibly Czech Chribska, 1970s
Price: £35Brass and Enamel Campaign Serving Set, Made in British India mark, 1920s
Price: £45Chinese Soapstone Brushwasher decorated with flowering Lotus, early 20th Century
Price: £45Vintage Gilt Metal Powder Box with a Tapestry Panel, probably French, 1930s
Price: £10PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE IS FREE UK SHIPPING ON THIS ITEM. For international buyers the shipping cost will be reduced by the UK shipping cost, so don't worry if you are outside the UK, you still receive this benefit!
Pair of French Blue Ground Square Vases Choisy Le Roi, late C19th
Price: £45Art Deco Islamic silver bracelet with inset stones
Price: £195Striking 1950s applique summer handbag
Price: £65Intricate Czech glass necklace 1930s
Price: £65Group lot of three jade necklaces
Price: £45Stunning demi parure by Hobe 1950s, necklace and bracelet
Price: £250Hobé et Cie was founded by Jacques Hobé in France in 1887. While he was trained as a master goldsmith, his business focused primarily on finely crafted sterling silver jewelry. William Hobé, his son, moved to the United States around 1920 bringing his family's acuity for producing high quality jewelry with him. (Credit: Google)
Victorian Silver Buckle set with Paste Stones, German circa 1900
Price: £100The sparkling stones and high quality mounting (there is a considerable weight of silver in this piece) would have made this buckle a striking addition to the Victorian ladies' wardrobe and it could equally well catch the eye today.
Gilt metal and Glass Bead Necklace by Louis Rousselet, French 1920s
Price: £35This necklace comprises three delicately modelled gilt metal stylised flower heads with yellow glass beads at the centre, joined on either side by further glass beads and flower heads and then a chain with fine metal and glass bead links.
Taxco bracelet set with carved obsidian stones c1950
Price: £55Massive natural coral beads
Price: £175Silver Brooch in the form of a Butterfly, Taxco 1940s
Price: £65Art Deco Galalith Necklace and Pendant with Coral Red plaques, 1930s
Price: £75Galalith is a a synthetic plastic made out of the interaction of casein and formaldehyde and was introduced to the fashion world by Coco Chanel in 1926. The commercial name is derived from the Ancient Greek words 'gala' (milk) and 'lithos' (stone).
Celluloid Bangle with Tortoiseshell style decoration circa 1930
Price: £20PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE IS FREE UK SHIPPING ON THIS ITEM. For international buyers the shipping cost will be reduced by the UK shipping cost, so don't worry if you are outside the UK, you still receive this benefit!
Art Deco continental black spinel and marcasite ring, 1920s
Price: £35Egyptian Revival scarab ring, 1930s
Price: £25A Set of Six Blue and White Willow Pattern Coasters English Ironstone 1980s
Price: £25These coasters formed part of their range. The decoration employs the transfer pattern technique developed in England in the mid eighteenth century and a staple of nineteenth century productions. Printed designs were 'transferred' to the ceramic surface allowing the production of extensive services in a matching pattern. The Chinese derived 'Willow Pattern' design seems to have been first used around 1790 and was probably designed by Thomas Minton for Spode. All the versions contain similar elements besides the pagodas and landscape scenes most notably the three figures on a bridge and a pair of flying swallows. In order to promote sales, various stories were invented based on elements of the design. These coasters are an amusing recollection of times past and highly practical in addition.
Victorian ladies watch chain c1900
Price: £40Victorian large 9ct gold brooch set with amber c1900
Price: £200A green glass paperweight, Tweedsmuir Glass, Chris Dodds, late C20th
Price: £25It is sold with a matching contemporary illuminated stand which enhance the decorative effect considerably and provides a modest light display installation for the home (see image 6).
A set of three Millefiori Glass Paperweights, possibly Italian Murano, late C20th
Price: £75This set is sold with matching contemporary illuminated stands which enhance the decorative effect considerably and provide a modest light display installation for the home (see illustrations 5 and 6).
Matching Trio of a Bakelite plaque and a pair of Salts, Italian Fontanini, mid C20th
Price: £25An Octagonal Brass Tray with a roundel of an elephant, probably Persian early C20th
Price: £45Large Cinnabar and filigree silver brooch, 1930s
Price: £45A set of three Brass Lizards, Peerage Brass, England 1930s
Price: £55Round pendant set with turquoise, Mexico, c1970, the chain later.
Price: £65Stunning Art Nouveau Dragonfly necklace c1920
Price: £250Constructed necklace with jade, egg yolk amber and cherry amber
Price: £250Outstanding swirl Bakelite necklace with faux cameo, 1920s
Price: £45Art Deco style Amber Glass Rocket Vase, probably Czech Rosice 1930s
Price: £30Unique 40 strand micro coral bead necklace, India 1910
Price: £85Pair of Edwardian Chinese silver brooches, c. 1910
Price: £25American 1980s statement necklace with intaglio pendants
Price: £25PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE IS FREE UK SHIPPING ON THIS ITEM. For international buyers the shipping cost will be reduced by the UK shipping cost, so don't worry if you are outside the UK, you still receive this benefit!
Long strand of Chinese cloisonne beads c1950
Price: £60Victorian Chinese turquoise beads 1900
Price: £400Tibetan turquoise and silver necklace 1930s
Price: £45A Poole Pottery Atlantis Vase by Jenny Haigh, 1970s
Price: £45Long Art Deco carnelian, bloodstone and goldstone necklace 1930s
Price: £95Goldstone is a type of glittering glass made in a low-oxygen reducing atmosphere. The finished product can take a smooth polish and be carved into beads, figurines, or other artifacts suitable for semiprecious stone, and in fact goldstone is often mistaken for or misrepresented as a natural material. It was first made in the 17th century in Italy. (Credit: Wikipedia)
French Art Deco Machine Age galalith paste necklace 1920s
Price: £25Mexican silver bracelet set with turquoise plaques, c1990
Price: £75Massive Grotto style belt buckle c1980
Price: £25Long Art Nouveau necklace with multiple drops c1930
Price: £75A Ceramic Moneybox in the form of a Pig, Helensgate Ceramics, mid twentieth century
Price: £25A Pair of Japanese Lacquered Porcelain Ginger Jars and Covers, late nineteenth century
Price: £250A Chinese Cloisonne Box and Cover circa 1900
Price: £75A Chinese Crackleware Famille Verte Ginger Jar decorated with Warriors circa 1880
Price: £45'Crackleware' glazed pieces, usually with 'bronzed bands, were a staple output of the Chinese potteries from the mid nineteenth century onwards and were produced in a wide variety of mainly vase shape forms, both in polychrome and blue and white and intended as decorative pieces for the Victorian rooms of the West. As with other ceramic types, the quality deteriorated and this piece is typical of late nineteenth century productions of a more modest level of craftsmanship but still retaining a naif charm. As with many ginger jars, this one lacks its original domed cover which would have been decorated to match.
A Blue Glass Sunburst Design Bowl, probably Sowerby, 1930s/1940s
Price: £45There is a record of the Sowerby Glassworks at Gateshead from as early as 1907. The first productions were of Vitro-Porcelain or "Milk Glass" type pieces. In the 1900s they produced designs from the 'Arts and Crafts' period and in the 1920s began producing another well known range: the iridescent "Carnival Glass." During the 1930s, Sowerby produced several Art Deco glass designs of which the current piece is one. The firm was eventually taken over in 1957, and finally closed in 1972.
A Pair of Glass Vases or Paperweights, probably Selkirk Glass, Scotland, 1980s/1990s
Price: £25Murano Art Glass Dish, 1960s
Price: £45Glossy brown crocodile handbag 1960s
Price: £65Japanese Fukagawa Imari Bowl, signed, circa 1880
Price: £380The Fukagawa kilns produced the best quality Imari items made in Japan in the late nineteenth century for export to the West. Their history starts with Ezaiemon Fukagawa who in 1856 became head of his family's porcelain business and in 1875 founded Koransha (The Company of the Scented Orchid) in Arita, Japan, to produce tableware for export. In 1894 the modern Fukagawa company was founded by Chuji Fukagawa, with the Fukagawa trade mark of Mount Fuji and a stream, as its trade mark. Dating here is within the Meiji period (1868 - 1912) probably around 1880. This conforms with the script mark used as opposed to the later symbol design.
WW1 sweetheart brooch c1915
Price: £25Lovely large brooch by Thomas L Mott c1940
Price: £20Georgian neck brooch c1820
Price: £85Nefertiti suite of pendant necklace and earrings, 20th century
Price: £75Pair of chandelier silver earrings 20th century
Price: £35Yellow ground Bursley Ware Dragon Bowl by Frederick Rhead, circa 1920
Price: £45
A Pair of Royal Doulton Ewers, marked, early C20th
Price: £120Incredible quality Silver and paste brooch c1950
Price: £45Sweet Taxco heart bracelet c1980
Price: £75Liberty Dollar 1922 mounted as a pendant on necklace
Price: £35Incredible Taxco collar necklace c1960
Price: £300Islamic mother of pearl pendant and earrings c1950
Price: £18Golden Amber Webb Glass Vase, marked, 1950s
Price: £45Thomas Webb began his glass career in 1829, when he became a partner in the Wordsley Glassworks. Various career changes followed and in 1859 he was joined by his sons Thomas Wilkes Webb and Charles Webb and began trading as Thomas Webb & Sons based in Stourbridge. The firm was run by various family members until mergers started to occur in the early twentieth century and Sven Fogelberg, previously from Swedish glassworks Kosta, became manager in 1932. Production continued with more mergers in the 1960s and 1970s until the firm closed in 1990. This vase was made by Thomas Webb during the 1950s as part of their 'Gay Glass' range in a design called 'Old English Bull's Eye' and has the typical 'Webb England' mark to the base.
Sowerby Blue Glass Footed Bowl, 1930s/1940s
Price: £25The Sowerby family came from the North West of England near Carlisle and settled in Gateshead in the late eighteenth century. The firm Sowerby Glassworks is known from 1807 onwards and continued production until 1972, concentrating on pressed glass. Catalogues of their wares still exist and they produced pieces in a wide variety of styles and shapes which retain their popularity today.
Art Deco paste collar necklace by Schreiber & Hiller c1930
Price: £125Scheurich West German Vase in Brutalist Style, late C20th
Estimate: £40 – 60Pair of Oriental Style green glazed Sylvac Jars and Covers, circa 1960
Estimate: £60 – 80Large Shelley Harmony Ware Vase glazed in blue and grey, 1930s
Estimate: £40 – 60Chinese Bone Netsuke carving of a man holding a musical instrument, early C20th
Price: £25West German Bay Keramik Pitcher with stylised floral designs, late C20th
Price: £45Founded by Eduard Bay in the 1930s and based in Ransbach Baumbach in the heart of the main West German pottery producing region, Bay Keramik grew to be one of the most prolific producers of ceramics in the ‘West German’ style and continued production into the 1990s. This piece retains its original paper label and the format of this allows dating to the 1970s/1980s. The jug has almost a slightly rustic feel and recalls much earlier German ceramic items. The numbers on the base indicate the form number but it has not been possible to identify this.
Art Deco Czech statement necklace set with real beetles c1920
Price: £150Victorian Egyptian Revival motif necklace with red stones c1900
Price: £85Egyptian Revival statement necklace signed EBE c1930
Price: £100Chinese Verre Églomisé Snuff Bottle with landscape scenes, fitted box, C20th
Price: £35Terracotta Glazed Bottle Vase with floral enamel decoration, Watcombe Pottery, circa 1900
Estimate: £20 – 30Chinese Soapstone Brush Washer with flowering lotus, early C20th
Price: £75A Chinese soapstone brush washer unusually modelled as a rounded triangular shallow basin in the form of a lotus leaf, footed and with a sprig of flowering lotus growing upwards from it with a vase behind in the form of lotus leaves. The skill of the carver is self evident and the design has been very carefully conceived, artistically employing the varied detail of the natural stone from which the piece was made. Soapstone was first used by the Chinese over three thousand years ago but began its popularity in the Ming dynasty (1368 -1644) with the height of production during the ensuing Qing dynasty (1644 – 1911) when a stone mined in the Shoushan village in northern Fujian was most commonly used. Shoushan soapstone is noted for its smooth texture, bright colours and fine grain and a wide variety of objects were carved from it. This piece is an excellent example of the genre and has survived in pristine condition to become a scholar’s object from the past which can be enjoyed and appreciated today. Production of soapstone carvings continued into the twentieth century and this is probably what we have here but almost certainly from the early years of the period.
Chinese Framed Ceramic Plaque depicting Peony, C20th
Price: £150Oriental Style Vase, West German Pottery, late C20th
Price: £45Victorian style Czech glass statement necklace c1930
Price: £65Pair of Japanese Blue and White Seto Ware Vases, early C20th
Price: £220The finely drawn brushwork here and the distinctive bright blue are characteristics of pieces made at Seto in Japan in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The city of Seto is located in the Aichi Prefecture and was the location of one of the Six Ancient Kilns of Japan. Pottery was produced there from the 13th century onwards. The kilns took part in the export of decorative wares to the West from the second half of the nineteenth century onwards producing a wide variety of forms, in particular pairs of vases, but with a speciality in flat plaques and table tops, for which they gained something of a monopoly. Their pieces are usually marked, to include the characters for Seto, and this pair of vases may have originally been signed themselves but with the marks partially obliterated in the firing process. The quality here matches anything else produced by the factories but the light weight and thinly potted body suggests a dating to the early 20th century rather than before, probably during the Taisho period (1912-1926). Nevertheless the skill in craftsmanship is obvious and contributes to a highly attractive pair of ornaments for a contemporary interior.