Catalog (2428)

A fine Art Deco 800 silver graduated jigger in an exaggerated flaring design. The sections measure 1, 1 1/2, and 2 1/2 ounces. The bottom is stamped for 800 silver and has an Italian mark used 1935-38 that was applied to finished silver goods already in the inventories of Italian jewelers and silversmiths.

• Origin: Italy, ca 1930
• Condition: excellent, no dings or monograms
• Dimensions: 2 1/8” tall; 2 1/2” wide at rim
• Weight: 36.0 grams

A delightful bisque figure of a skiing Santa Claus carrying a cloth sack on his back. The paperboard skis are enhanced with glittery mica snow. The bottom is stamped "Made in Japan."

• Origin: Japan, ca 1925
• Condition: all excellent, except one ski has an old break that was reglued
• Height: 2-3/4"

A colorful antique iron Christmas feather tree stand decorated with three gnomes dancing under a mushroom. In German folklore the mushroom was considered a good luck omen and it frequently pops up as a motif in antique German Christmas decorations. The stand is heavy enough to hold a very large feather tree. It would also make a great centerpiece for a Holiday table.

• Origin: Germany, ca 1900-30
• Condition: good; some paint loss and rust (see photos)
• Dimensions: top diameter, 7-1/2"; base diameter, 10-3/4"; opening diameter, 1"; height, 8-3/4"

A 1930's Santa Clause figurine with a composition face and boots, a cotton batting beard, a felt jacket, and a cotton toy bag and pants. He stands on a mica-covered paperboard base. Unmarked, but definitely pre-war Japanese. Some of the Japanese Santas have rather fearsome faces, but this one is quite jolly. At 7" tall, he's also a bit larger than most.

Origin: Japan, ca 1930
• Condition: excellent, bright colors
• Height: 7"

A colorful vintage Germany Santa Claus squeeker toy. He has a composition face and cotton batting beard. His suite is red and blue wool felt with white trim. The boots are pressed paperboard. The body conceals the bellows for the squeeker. The bellows still moves, but no longer makes noise. The original “Made In Germany” sticker is still inside one foot.

• Origin: Germany, ca. 1930
• Condition: excellent painted details, a 1/4" hole to one side of the felt hood, no noise
• Height: 7”

A very rare cobalt blue version of the Santa Claus or Belsnickel bottle created around 1900 by Monroe Gandy Husted of the Husted-Hall Mold Works in Bridgeton, NJ. The bottle was blown into a three-part mold. This example retains the original quatrefoil-shaped front label showing a snow-covered mountain cabin surrounded by a holly leaf border. The clear bottles have an embossed “M.G. Husted” signature, but the cobalt bottles do not, leading some to suspect the blue versions were reproductions. The original label and the wear marks on the basal rim clearly indicate an early date. Husted died in 1923, so it’s likely that these bottles were made in the years following his death, up to the 1930s.

• Origin: America, 1923-38
• Condition: excellent, no chips or cracks, original paper label intact
• Height: 12-1/4”

A terrific pair of 14K yellow gold cufflinks, each fashioned as a pair of ridged spheres topped with round sapphires. The gemstones have a nice medium-light violet-blue color that contrasts nicely with the gold. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

Origin: America, ca. 1940. Condition: excellent. Size: 3/4" x 7/16". Weight: 6.4 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: .392 carat.

A classic figural sterling silver thimble jigger by Thomae & Co. The rim is engraved “Only A Thimble Full.” The interior retains a softly gilt surface. Several companies made variations of thimble jiggers, but those by Thomae are among the best because of their superior weight and workmanship.

• Origin: America, ca. 1935
• Condition: excellent, no dings or monograms
• Dimensions: 2” tall
• Weight: 35.6 grams

A French Art Deco arched chrome cocktail pick holder with a dozen picks with colorful bakelite finials. The holder is French, but the picks (probably early replacements) are marked “Made in England.” This simple design is somewhat easier to use than some of the other figural pick holders. Cocktail pick holders (“porte-piques”) was once a fixture of every French bar or café. Today, they can be used to spear cocktail olives or cherries, or to serve small hors d’oeuvres.

• Origin: France and England, ca 1930
• Dimensions: 5-1/4” long x 1-1/2” deep x 3” high.

A very fine pair of 14K gold cufflinks set with rubies by Carrington for Tiffany & Co. The square faces feature rounded gold ridges typical of “tank” jewelry from around 1935, flanked by rows of square cut rubies. The rubies are unheated and have inclusions typical of stones from the Mogok region of Burma. The rubies are beautifully matched and have strong red coloring with slight purplish overtones. The faces are joined by bar connectors. Each face is stamped with Carrington’s 14K gold mark, and each of the connectors is stamped Tiffany & Co. Much of Tiffany’s better-quality jewelry was manufactured by the great Newark jewelers such as Carrington. Sometimes, pieces are marked only by Tiffany, and other times they are marked by Tiffany and the manufacturer.

• Origin: America, ca 1935
• Condition: excellent, all original
• Dimensions: faces, 1/2” x 1/2"
• Weight: 17.2 grams
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 2.32 carats

An elegant boxed set of gilt sterling silver demitasse spoons with fox head finials. Each spoon is stamped with the hallmark for William Suckling. Each is also stamped “Swaine & Adeney,” one of London’s most exclusive luxury goods shops for more than 270 years. The spoons are presented in their original velvet- and silk-lined fitted case. An extra spoon, apparently from a second box, is included.

• Origin: Birmingham, England, 1938
• Condition: excellent, gilding intact; box shows typical wear
• Dimensions: spoons, 3-13/16” long
• Weight: 84.3 grams.

One of the nicest Retro buckle bracelets we’ve seen, this 18K gold and platinum example comprises a strap of honeycomb-shaped links set off with a large buckle pave-set with rose cut and single cut diamonds in platinum. The buckle’s tongue, frame and loop are set with calibre cut synthetic rubies. This bracelet has a particularly sculptural appearance. Rubies from the Retro period are nearly always synthetics because the usual shipping lanes from the gem mines of southeast Asia were cut off because of World War II. The bracelet bears French marks for 18K and platinum.

• Circa 1940
• Condition: excellent, all original
• Dimensions 7” circumference; strap, 1” wide; buckle, 1-1/2” wide
• Weight: 90.7 grams
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: ruby, 4.5 carats; diamond, 1.0 carat

A handsome pair of 18K yellow gold cufflinks by Tiffany & Co. set with square cut sapphires. The cufflinks are fashioned in a sort of modified belt buckle motif. The sapphires have very good uniform color and show no indication of heat treatment. The backs are stamped Tiffany & Co. and also have the manufacturing jeweler’s mark for Larter.

• Origin: America, ca. 1940
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 9/16” x 11/16”
• Weight: 13.2 grams
• Approximate Total Sapphire Weight: 1.0 carat

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 superb Retro 14K gold ring in the form of a buckle set with round brilliant cut diamonds and calibre cut natural rubies. The design is enhanced with a prong-set .65 carat diamond solitaire. The diamond is G/H color and VVS2 clarity. The smaller diamonds are of similar quality. All the diamonds are set in platinum. The rubies have fine color and excellent color. The interior of the shank is stamped “14K.”

• Origin: America, ca 1940
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: crown, 3/4" x 17/16” and sits 1/4” high above the finger
• Finger Size: 6-1/2
• Weight: 9.7 grams
• Approximate Total Diamond Weight: diamond, 1.05 carats; ruby, .66 carat

An excellent late Victorian silver baton link watch chain, the batons decorated with niello in a striped pattern echoed in the striped niello of the dog clip and large bolt clasp. The silver batons are joined by shorter gilt silver double baton links. The chain is stamped “800” and with the Swiss silver hallmark used prior to 1934.

• Origin: Switzerland, ca. 1900
• Condition: excellent, all niello intact except wear to the niello on the dog clip
• Length: 17-1/8”
• Weight: 10.8 grams

A nice Art Deco cocktail pick set formed as a dark red bakelite cherry atop a rosewood base holding six bright red bakelite cherry-finial picks. The cocktail pick holder (“porte-piques”) was once a fixture of every French bar or café, as well as private bars in the home. Today, they can be used for their original purpose or to serve small hors d’oeuvres.

• Origin: France, ca. 1930
• Condition: excellent, minor wear to the finish along the lower edge of one side of the base
• Dimensions: 2-5/8” x 2-5/8” x 4”

For anniversary or wedding jewelry, there’s nothing more romantic than Alphonse Augis’ love token jewelry. Usually, they are round medallions, but this exceptionally rare piece is in the form of a love letter using a rebus to spell out “Plus qu’hier, moins que demain” (“More than yesterday, less than tomorrow,” a line from a love poem written by Rosemonde Gérard to her husband Edmond Rostand, author of “Cyrano de Bergerac” in 1889. The word “plus” is symbolized by a plus sign and the word “moins” by a minus sign set with a synthetic ruby. Augis created the love token in 1907, and this is the only example we’ve seen in a love letter form. The pendant is stamped with Augis’ maker’s mark and with French 18K gold marks.

• Origin: France, ca 1930
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 11/16” x 25/32” (excluding bail)
• Weight: 2.3 grams