Douglas Fisher Garniture

This pair of objects were made around 1900 to 1910 in Italy. They are crafted from hand-molded terra cotta that has been marbleized with colored slip and fired in low heat creating a...

An exceptionally fine pair of English Staffordshire Porcelain mantle vases now converted to electric table lamps of medium proportions, Circa 1860. Of traditional bulbous outline ...

This is a wonderful Derbyshire Ashford pietra dura obelisk, inlaid with lillies, circa 1880 in date. The obelisk is beautifully inlaid with a Pietra Dura of white flowers and malach...

A rare silvered metal desk or tabletop planter inlaid with 12 framed Pietra Dura panels of inlaid colorful flowers on a black base, complete with its ...

This is a superb decorative antique Italian Grand Tour marble Pietra Dura mounted desk paperweight, circa 1880 in date. This splendid rectangular paperweight is exquisitely inlaid with a sumptuous arrangement of semi-precious stones including malachite, agate, onyx and amethyst. It is beautifully inlaid on a slate base. Not only is this desk paperweight very functional, but it is also an exquisite mineralogical wonder that can be admired by all discerning collectors. Condition: In excellent condition, please see photos for confirmation, Dimensions in cm: Height 2 x Width 17 x Depth 10 Dimensions in inches: Height 1 inch x width 7 inches x depth 4 inches. Pietra dura is a term for the inlay technique of using cut and fitted, highly polished coloured stones to create images. It is considered a decorative art. Pietre dure is an Italian plural meaning "hard rocks" or hardstones; the singular pietra dura is also encountered in Italian. In Italian, but not in English, the term embraces all gem engraving and hardstone carving, which is the artistic carving of three-dimensional objects in semi-precious stone, normally from a single piece, for example in Chinese jade. The traditional convention in English has been to use the singular pietra dura just to denote multi-colored inlay work. However, in recent years there has been a trend to use pietre dure as a term for the same thing, but not for all of the techniques it covers, in Italian. But the title of a 2008 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Art of the Royal Court: Treasures in Pietre Dure from the Palaces of Europe used the full Italian sense of the term, probably because they thought that it had greater brand recognition. The material on the website speaks of objects such as a vase in lapis lazuli as being examples of "hardstone carving (pietre dure)" The Victoria & Albert Museum in London uses both versions on its website, but uses pietra dura. "A method of inlaying coloured marbles or semi-precious stones into a stone base, often in geometric or flower patterns...." Giovanni Montelatici...

Stunning pair of massive English terracotta garden urns If you are looking for that classic English garden look - then here it is Impressive pair of an important architectural qualit...

This is a superb decorative antique Italian Grand Tour marble Pietra Dura mounted desk paperweight, circa 1880 in date. This splendid rectangular paperweight is exquisitely inlai...

Pair of Coalbrookdale vases with applied flowers, circa 1840.

Rare pair of 19th Century regency period tole cachepots or planters handcrafted in tin in classic form having four sides each hand decorated with scenes from the English countryside ...

Depicting butterflies with flowers and berries.

Pair of English porcelain floral covered vases, circa 1840.

Standout vintage Italian white marble box decorated on a classic pietra dura technique in elaborate floral designs with mother of pearl, marble and semi precious stones.