Catalog: Vintage Arts (283)

A superb set of four Art Deco chrome shot glasses, each with a different color of opaque enamel at the rim, enclosed in a fitted leather case by Newey. Newey was a major English maker of leather goods and a supplier to top-level retailers such as Harrod's. The case is embossed with Newey's logo and each of the shot glasses is marked "Made In Germany."

Origin: Germany/England, ca. 1930. Condition: virtually mint; no dings, no scrapes to the leather. Size: shot glasses, 1-3/4" tall; case, 2-11/16" tall.

A vintage English leather traveling case intended to hold a set of shirt studs. The top is embossed "Studs" in gilt letters. The interior has a sueded surface. Though intended for use when traveling, these boxes are an excellent way to store either cufflinks or studs on a daily basis. The bottom is marked "Real Hide Made In England."

Origin: England, ca. 1930. Condition: excellent. Dimensions: 2-5/8" diameter.

A rare silverplate cocktail recipe disk by Napier. The silverplate case holds a celluloid dial that can be rotated to show printed recipes for twenty classic cocktails. A jump bail allows the disk to be hung by a chain around a cocktail shaker or decanter. The rim is marked "Napier Pat. Pend." We've never seen this particular Napier design before.

Origin: America, ca. 1935. Condition: very good, very minor plating wear as is typical of Napier pieces. Dimensions: 2" diameter.

A lovely Art Deco cameo glass perfume bottle with rare amethyst glass casing in "Design No 8039" by Cristalleries de Nancy. The design features sprays of stylized poppies against a frosted background. The cameo design is accented with cut details at the shoulder and at the top of the hollow-blown stopper. The base is acid-stamped “Cristal Nancy France.” This design was made in several different overlay colors including green, cobalt blue and ruby, but amethyst appears to be the rarest. The design was probably created by Auguste Houillon, the company's artistic director.

Cristalleries de Nancy was established in 1921 and after winning the gold medal at the 1925 Art Deco Exhibition in Paris, it became the primary challenger to Daum during the Art Deco era. Luxury perfume bottles and dresser accessories were the company’s specialty. The firm closed in 1934.

Origin: France, 1921-34. Condition: excellent; no chips or cracks to the bottle; a small moon on the bottom edge of the stopper. Dimensions: 6” tall.

Six sterling silver demitasse spoons in a classic pattern featuring a gadrooned edge. The backs of the bowls are fully hallmarked for Chester, 1923. The maker's mark is "S.I. Ld.".

Origin: Chester, England, 1923. Condition: excellent, no monograms. Size: 4-1/16" long.

A pretty Art Deco cut glass perfume bottle with an intaglio stopper. The periwinkle blue body is cut in a diamond pattern, while the flat round stopper has lapidary cut edges and an intaglio four-leaf clover. The overall effect is very sweet. The flat base is acid-etched “Made in Czechoslovakia” inside an elongated oval.

Origin: Czechoslovakia, ca. 1920. Condition: excellent, no chips or cracks. Size: 3-3/4” tall.

A very rare "Cheerio" cocktail shaker in ruby glass with its original chrome top and recipe holder. The recipe holder contains a series of twelve cards that illustrate recipes for different cocktails. The recipes are far more varied than most recipe shakers, and include directions for a Hula-Hula, Princesse,Bamboo, Blackthorn and Aldo-Tropical. The cards have a patent date of 1934.

Origin: America, ca. 1934. Condition: recipe cards have water staining; the pour cap has a 1/4" split and the lid has a 1/4" ding; the bottom edge of the glass has a 5/8" flake that can be quite successfully hidden under the chrome recipe holder. Size: 11" tall.

A terrific pair of Art Deco sterling silver tension-hinged sugar tongs or “nips” by W. & S. Sorensen. The twisted upper handles are decorated with gilt crown-shaped finials and the tong ends repeat the twisted pattern of the upper handles. The tongs could be used for sugar cubes, candies, or even olives. Hallmarked by Sorensen. The tongs are very well made and are quite heavy.

Origin: Denmark, ca. 1930. Condition: excellent, all original, traces of original gilding intact. Size: 4-3/8” long. Weight: 30.5 grams.

A delightful French Art Deco cocktail pick set in the form of a carved rosewood cat arching his back to hiss at a little chrome snail. A wooden rack holds six chrome cocktail picks, each topped with a snail. All are presented on a macassar ebony base. Sets such as these were used in French homes as well as on the bar counters at cafes.

• Origin: France, ca. 1935.
• Condition: excellent, all original, one pick has very minor plating wear visible on close inspection.
• Dimensions: 5-7/8" x 3-1/4" x 4" high.

A set of six sterling silver coffee spoons by Asprey & Co. Each spoon has a brownish-black bakelite “coffee bean”—a decorative device popular in England during the Art Deco period. Each spoon is fully hallmarked for Asprey, 1931. The spoons are presented in their original silk- and velvet-lined fitted box, the lid of which is imprinted “Asprey/166 Bond St/London”.

• Origin: England, 1931.
• Dimensions: spoons, 3 7/8" long.
• Weight: 43.0 grams.
• Condition: excellent, all original, no monograms; case is like new.

A French Art Deco cocktail pick set in the form of a large chrome snail on a mahogany base. The design is by the famed French Art Deco children’s books illustrator Benjamin Rabier, who had a side job designing entertaining barware. The twelve picks have red bakelite finials that resemble cherries. Cocktail pick holders (“porte-piques”) were once a fixture of every Parisian bar and café. Today, they are used in home bars to spear olives, cherries or onions in a cocktail, or so serve small hors d’eouvres.

• Origin: France, ca. 1930
• Condition: excellent, no chrome loss, a tiny bit of scuffing on the wood finish
• Dimensions: 4-7/8” x 2-1/2” x 4-1/2”

A French Art Deco cocktail pick set in the form of Gideon the duck and his snail friend worked in chrome on a mahogany base. The design is by the famed French Art Deco illustrator Benjamin Rabier, who created a comic strip called "The Adventures of Gideon" in 1923. It was immensely popular and Rabier was commissioned to make a range of entertaining barware. Few of Rabier's designs were signed, but this example is signed with his full name. The twelve picks have red bakelite finials. Cocktail pick holders ("porte-piques") were once a fixture of every French bar and café. Today, they can be use to spear olives of cherries in a cocktail, or to serve small hors d'oeuvres.

• Origin: France, ca. 1930.
• Dimensions: 5 7/16" x 3" x 4 1/2".
• Condition: very good; a small area of wear to chrome in the folds of the tail feathers and another smaller spot on the underside of the tail; normal age-appropriate wear to the wooden base.

A classic mid-20th century French silver tastevin of traditional form. The bowl is decorated with angled godrons for evaluating white wines and small convex perles and larger concave cupules for use with red wines. The handle, also, is in the traditional snake form. Up until the mid-20th century, a few silversmiths in France were able to raise an entire tastevin from a single Napoleon III 5-franc coin. The work was accomplished solely with the aid of variously-sized hammers which were used to thin and spread out the original coin and a series of other tools used to form the decorations. They can often be identified by the the exact weight (always 32.5 grams before the addition of the handle). Only a handful of master silversmiths were able to create a tastevin in which the phrase “DIEU PROTEGE LA FRANCE” (“God protect France”), which originally appeared on the rim of the 5-franc coin, was still legible at the rim of the tastevin. The last silversmith with this documented ability stopped working in 1968. The tastevin is stamped with the “Minerve” mark for 800 silver and with an illegible maker’s mark.

Origin: France, ca. 1930. Condition: excellent. Size: 25/32” high; 2-3/4” diameter (excluding handle). Weight: 32.9 grams.

Outstanding three-piece sterling silver dresser set with guilloche enamel. Both brushes have natural bristles and the jar is panel-cut. All pieces are fully hallmarked for "G. Bros." London and Birmingham, 1928. The markings also indicate the pieces were made for export to America.

Origin: London & Birmingham, England, 1928. Condition: excellent, including the bristles; absolutely no problems with the enamel. Size: hairbrush 9" long; clothesbrush 6-1/4" long; jar 2" diam.

A classic figural sterling silver thimble jigger by Thomae & Co. The rim is engraved "Only A Thimble Full." The interior retains its original gilding. Several companies made variations of this jigger, but those by Thomae are among the best due to their superior weight and workmanship. This particular example is several grams heavier than most Thomae thimbles.

Origin: America, ca. 1935. Condition: excellent, no dings or monograms. Size: 1-15/16" tall. Weight: 45.8 grams.

An Art Deco sterling silver handled double jigger by silversmith John Hasselbring (Brooklyn, NY). The angularity of the handle contrasts nicely with the traditional shape of the cups. Stamped with Hasselbring's hallmark.

Origin: America, ca. 1930. Condition: very good, a few pinpoints on handle and cups visible in strong, raking light; no monograms. Dimensions: 5-3/8" x 4-1/8". Weight: 78.7 gr.

Unusual sterling silver lettuce fork in Stieff's enduring "Rose" pattern. Originally intended to serve lettuce, this piece could be used or any variety of modern foods. Origin: Baltimore, MD, early 1900's. Condition: excellent, no monogram. Size: 9-1/4" long.

A set of six sterling silver coffee spoons by Asprey & Co. Each spoon has a brownish-black bakelite “coffee bean”—a decorative device popular in England during the Art Deco period. Each spoon is fully hallmarked for Asprey, 1931. The spoons are presented in their original silk- and velvet-lined fitted box, the lid of which is imprinted “Asprey/166 Bond St/London”.

Origin: England, 1931. Condition: excellent, all original, no monograms. Size: 3-7/8” long. Weight: 43.0 grams.