A 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: £75West German Ceramic Vase, Marei, 1970s
Price: £45While not stamped with a maker's mark, vases of this type are attributed to the West German Ceramics factory Marei which produced pieces from 1949 to 2016. Marei was the commonly used abbreviation for the firm's name which was Majolikafabrik Rheinbach Jean Fuss and Sohn. The pieces are distinguished by the use of a reddish clay but this was sometimes more brown or dark brown depending on the suppliers used. Marks are usually impressed into the base although these are often just pattern numbers, as here. Many pieces are unmarked and some are stamped 'MADE IN GERMANY' or 'W.GERMANY'. The pattern number here is '7104'and is found on similar pieces with the same shape but different decoration. This vase was probably made in the 1970s and is typical of the striking designs the firm produced.
Art Deco Python Clutch
Price: £85A 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: £25East German Ceramic Vase, VEB Haldensleben, 1950s
Price: £35The factory mark, a shallow dish superimposed over the letter 'H' inside a circle, is that of the East German pottery VEB Haldensleben. VEB stands for 'Volkseigener Betrieb', meaning a people-owned enterprise and used in relationship to the state owned workplaces in the GDR. Haldensleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany and a ceramics factory was created there in 1945 with the nationalization of the Carstens Uffrecht plant that followed the division of Germany at the end of WWII. Halsdenleben focused primarily on the manufacture of vases. Its output tended to be of superior quality and employed more restrained glazes than those used by its West German counterparts. Upon the reunifucation of Germany in 1990, the factory was returned to its original owners, the Carstens family. The pattern number here is found on other pieces with the same shape but the abstract decoration used is quite individual and evocative of 1950s and early 1960s designs.
French Art Deco Clutch bag with faux jade insert
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: £35Pair of Ceramic Figures of Swans, probably continental, C20th
Price: £45Chinese Reverse Glass Painting of Two Ladies on a Garden Terrace, first half C20th
Price: £180Incredible 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: £18Rare early Czech glass brooch c1920
Price: £65Victorian Cranberry and Uranium or Vaseline Glass Jug and a matching Bowl, circa 1880
Price: £30A vintage Avon Spring Bouquet oriental style red rubber coated vase, 1980-1981
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!
Scheurich 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 – 60Amber statement necklace with round drops c1960
Price: £65Chinese Celadon Glaze Bottle Vase with White Slip decoration, Jingdezhen mark, C20th
Price: £75A Japanese Hichozan Shinpo Brush washer circa 1880
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!
Victorian 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.
Japanese Gouache Painting of Flowering Lotus, signed and framed, C20th
Price: £45An Art Glass Vase, Aseda Glasbruk, Swedish, 1960s/1970s
Price: £75Japanese Satsuma style Censer, 1930s
Price: £15PLEASE 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 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.
Chinese aventurine lariat necklace
Price: £20Scheurich Ceramic Vase, Market Scene Pattern, 225-46, West Germany, 1970s
Estimate: £60 – 80Pair of Chinese Paintings on Silk, framed, 1960s
Price: £45Small Chinese Gilt Ground Cloisonné Bowl, C20th
Price: £35Pair of Japanese Shaped Saucer Dishes, Maruku China, 1940s
Price: £25The Maruku factory seems to have operated in Japan after the second world war producing modest but good quality wares for export, rather in the style of Noritake pieces. Usually their pieces are marked in addition ‘Made in Japan’ but for some reason not here. The forms, colourings and designs here are quite unusual and while modest, these are good quality decorative items suitable for a contemporary interior.
PLEASE 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!
Japanese Noh Figure Doll of a Lady, Showa Period (1926-1989)
Price: £55Dolls such as these were made for display, sometimes at the special ‘Doll’s Day’ or ‘Girls Day’ festival held annually on the third of March and termed ‘Hinamatsuri’. The elaborate dress is sometimes known as ‘Hagoromo’ (‘feathered’) and the mask with its fixed expression derives from the well known ‘Noh theatre’, a major form of Japanese musical drama created in the fourteenth century which combines dance, music and song and is still performed today. The actors are all male and play the female roles wearing a lady’s mask.
The craftsmanship of this piece is self evident and it was most likely made in the second half of the C20th. It can stand equally well on its own or as part of a wider collection and would be a desirable acquisition either way.
Davidson Glass Topaz Briar Table Centrepiece, 1930s
Price: £45George Davidson founded the Teams Flint Glass Works in 1867, which later became known as George Davidson & Co. In the 1880s the company began producing pressed glass tableware in a variety of shapes and by the 1920s their designs began to reflect the new Art Deco trends. The firm continued production until the 1980s, closing in 1987. Some of their catalogues still exist and one from the early 1930s shows a piece very similar to this one (see image 11). The colour is known as ‘Topaz Briar’ and the swirling effects resemble other pieces in their ‘cloud glass’ range, a pattern for which the firm was famous.
The colourings and small size of this piece make it an unusual find amongst the Davidson wares which can be seen today and the presence of all three elements (perfect and complete) make it a desirable addition to a collection of twentieth century pressed glass.
Chinese lace agate earrings and necklace suite
Price: £75Chinoiserie necklace with peking glass plaques c1960
Price: £45Silver rose ring, 20th century
Price: £35Red paste floral earrings and necklace suite c1960
Price: £45Fine Quality engraved French Glass Dish with naturalistic Ormolu Mounts, early C20th
Price: £25Vintage Cobalt Blue Glass Perfume Bottle and Stopper, 1930s
Price: £15
Egyptian Eye of Horus braclet c20th
Price: £25Regency style statement necklace c1950
Price: £125Faux pearl necklace c1910
Price: £15Art Deco statement necklace with real pearls and paste stones c1920
Price: £100Egyptian Revival statement necklace c1920
Price: £85Vintage hand carved Fossil Stone Trinket Box and Cover, C20th
Price: £25Two Decorative Vintage Fans, 1950s
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!
Victorian facetted amber bead necklace c1900
Price: £125Outstanding opera length Victorian amber beads c1900
Price: £175Victorian style Czech glass statement necklace c1930
Price: £65Art Deco Czech statement necklace set with real beetles c1920
Price: £150Art Deco paste collar necklace by Schreiber & Hiller c1930
Price: £125Charming Dog motif Earrings c1930
Price: £25Antique English Staffordshire pitcher, William Brownfield and Sons, circa 1860.
Estimate: £40 – 60A Pair of African Ebony Wood Makonde Style Carved Figures, probably late C20th
Price: £55Maasai and Makonde are ethnic terms used to describe African peoples who live in Tanzania, Mozamique and Kenya, with their own distinctive languages, culture and art. This pair of figures is typical of the wood carvings produced by their craftsmen in the second half of the twentieth century but their quality and size is well above average, the ebony wood finely rendered with much attention to detail and finished with a highly attractive glossy patina. The two figures complement one another well, their heads slightly turned to face one another with their legs turned slightly outwards and their robes flowing almost in mirror image. The abstract style makes them well suited to a contemporary interior where they could prove a striking accessory.
Long Art Nouveau necklace with multiple drops c1930
Price: £75Stunning Art Nouveau Dragonfly necklace c1920
Price: £250Victorian large 9ct gold brooch set with amber c1900
Price: £200Massive natural coral beads
Price: £175Mille fiore bead flapper necklace c1930
Price: £95Pair of Japanese Noritake Vases, early C20th
Price: £30The Noritake compnay was set up by the Morimura family at Noritake near Nagoya in the early twentieth century. Called at first 'Nippon Toki Kaisha Ltd' on its founding in 1904, the business soon changed its name to 'Noritake' and began the manufacture of porcelains for the domestic and export markets. The mark seen here is interesting. It comprises a 'Komaru' symbol, crowned with "Noritake" and with the mark 'Made In Japan'. The centre symbol said to be taken from the Japanese character "Komaru", meaning "overcoming difficulties". According to the Noritake company tradition this mark was designed when contact with the different culture of the west early in the 20th century caused problems of adaptation. It is also known as the 'tree crest mark' which is the clan crest of the Morimura family. This mark is said to have been registered in London for the UK market by 1908. The curled up ends of the Komaru symbol seen here distinguish this mark from later versions and allow a dating of this piece to the early twentieth century.
Noritake porcelain became synonymous with finely potted tea and breakfast services made in great quantities for export. These vases are a rather more unusual production and show the factory capable of producing high quality pieces with decorative potential.
Chinese blue and white ceramic beads, C20th
Price: £15PLEASE 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 Shagreen Picture Frame, 1930s
Price: £110Shagreen is a natural hide, typically from shark, stingray or dogfish, worked through special processes to produce a granular surface effect. Known in China and Japan from the earliest times and popular in Europe in th eighteenth century Shagreen enjoyed its greatest popularity in the Art Deco period where it was used as a covering for writing desks and well-dressed cabinetry and smaller items such as the picture frame we have here. The clean lines of this piece and the palette of colours employed fit exactly with th ethos of the Art Deco period and a dating to the 1930s is extremely likely. A luxury item at the time it could be used now to provide enhanced presentation of a favourite image adding to it a hint of true elegance.
Murano White Glass Vase of abstract organic form, 1960s
Price: £55Art Deco Wooden Cigarette Box, 1930s
Price: £25Japanese Kutani Dish decorated with the Thousand Faces pattern, first half C20th
Price: £25The colourings and style of work here clearly indicate the workshops of Kutani (the word means 'nine valleys') in the former Kaga province of Japan. By the nineteenth century the majority of their pieces were decorated in iron red and gold but sometimes with other colours in addition, as here. The ‘thousand faces’ pattern (an apocryphal term and this cataloguer has not attempted to count the number of faces appearing here) seems to have been evolved around the end of the nineteenth century and then continued in production until the mid twentieth. Both plates in various sizes and even tea sets are found in the design. The mark ‘Made in Japan’ was usually employed after 1941 (in the previous twenty years ‘Japan’ was the norm) but there are exceptions and the paste of the foot rim here does suggest a slightly earlier date, perhaps around 1930. In perfect condition, with very little wear to the decoration, this piece is a fine example of a rather eccentric decorative patttern.
Cranberry Glass Vase circa 1900
Price: £30Large python handbag with wood closure detail 1930s
Price: £125Chinese Blue and white ceramic beads, C20th
Price: £15PLEASE 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!
Sowerby Amber Glass Centrepiece circa 1930
Price: £75The 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.
The centrpiece figurine, which was intended as a flower holder or ‘frog’, is rather unusual; normally the figures are female but the style of the modelling is identical. Similar designs to the bowl can be found in a 1936 catalogue but versions of it even appear in another catalogue from 1882. Many centrepiece/bowl combinations are found and some of them are not always original. This may possibly be the case here but if so the ‘match’ is extremely pleasing to the eye and the two elements set one another off perfectly to produce a striking example of Art Deco decorative design.
Two Brass Art Nouveau Style pitchers, Joseph Sankey and Sons circa 1910
Price: £75‘J.S.&S’ was the mark for Joseph Sankey and Sons, a firm based in Bilston, Wolverhampton, who specialised in the manufacture of art metalware. Production seems to have started in the late nineteenth century and the firm registered designs, many in the art nouveau style, from 1896 to 1914. These ewers or pitchers were clearly a popular design to judge from the numbers found today but were referred to in the catalogues simply as ‘hot water jugs’. They were made in brass and copper in three finishes, hammered, lizard skin and art nouveau style, as here. At least six different sizes are known and sometimes the size number can be found on the base (indicating the number of pints the vessel would hold) along with the manufacturers mark, as is the case with the smaller ewer which is marked '2'. The larger ewer is only marked 'solid brass' but its height indicates its capacity which is six pints.
Popular in their day, these brass pitchers are highly sought after now for their obvious decorative appeal but clearly could also serve as flower vases providing a striking enhancement to an interior setting.
Chinese Blue and White Snuff Bottle circa 1900
Price: £45Small Chinese Ginger Jar decorated in Famille Rose enamels, second half C20th
Price: £25The stamped mark to the base reads ‘Zhongguo Jingdezhen Zhi (China Jingdezhen Made)’ with the letter ‘V’ between two lines. In the early 1950s almost all the factories in Jiangxi, the province where the kiln town Jingdezhen is situated, were merged into larger units, each made up of ten to fifteen previously independent factories. From this time factory numbers such as we have here (=V=) came to be used and many pieces are found with a wide variety of letters and numbers indicating the various cooperatives. The quality of the productions varied and it is a reasonable assumption that increasing years witnessed a decline. While other examples of this type of jar exist, some with their original domed covers, this piece is of the very best quality, indeed the work matches earlier pieces in the style very closely, and a dating to the mid 1950s seems quite plausible. It shows that the Chinese potters continued to produce to a high standard when they chose to do so and provides a pleasing memento of the closing era of a tradition of porcelain production stretching back long into the past.