GERMANY 1915 Art Nouveau Antique Duck Head Cigar Cutter In Plated Silver

Multifunctional vesta lighter box designed by Peter Hertz (1811-1885). Beautiful antique vesta case, created in Copenhagen Denmark at the silversmiths workshop of Peter Hertz in 185...

An art deco petrol lighter designed by Naldun. Very beautiful and useful petrol lighter, created in America by the Naldun Company, back in the 1930. It was crafted as a slider piece in the art deco style, with an octagonal shape in solid .925/.999 sterling silver. Embellished on top with an Essex glass piece depicting the intaglio carving of a horse. It is in great shape with minimal trace of wear, with no dings, marks or bumps. The Essex glass piece is in perfect shape with remains of all the vibrant colors. Weight: 16.40 Grams, (10.51 Dwt). Size: Octagonal Small. Measurements: 15 mm by 15 mm by 43 mm (0.59 x 0.59 x 1.70 Inches). Hallmarks: Stamped with the maker's mark, the mark for the assay of the silver and signed, "NALDUN REG. MADE IN U.S.A PAT. PEND. STERLING". Essex Glass Essex crystal pieces are formed from a rock crystal cabochon (polished domes of rock crystal with a flat base), an image or motif is then reverse carved into the flat base, and then painted, to give them impression of a three dimensional object or image encapsulated in the cabochon when viewed from above. Production of a reverse crystal intaglio begins with the mining and cutting of fine rock crystal from Brazil or Madagascar. A well-formed cabochon is the key to a beautifully made reverse intaglio and the tedious process of hand polishing it to perfection had to be completed before the design work could begin. A watercolor rendering of the image was painted on the underside of the cabochon and an oil and diamond dust mixture was used along with up to 250 scribing tools to carve the design into the interior of the crystal “…the deeper the carving the more pronounced trompe l’oeil effect.” Once the carving was established the painting process began with extremely fine brushes and paint working in reverse to create incredibly detailed images. This process of carving into the back of the cabochon is sometimes referred to as reverse intaglio, not be to mistaken with intaglio, which is designed to be viewed from the same side on which it is carved, unlike Essex crystal. Particularly when the image is of something which is itself small in reality, such as an insect, they can be very convincing when created by skilled craftsman. Thomas Cook was believed to be responsible for introducing them to Britain from the continent in the 1860s, and there were initially sold by Hancock’s in London. During the same period the artist William...

An antique vesta box with art-nouveau motifs. This is an amazing and rare vesta matches box, created in America with Art-Nouveau motifs, back in the 1890-95. The vesta box has been ...

Desk elephant Striker Lighter designed by Ronson. The striker lighters made by Ronson are famous under collectors. This extremely rare desk Striker Lighter was created in New Jersey United States by The Art Metal Works for The Ronson Co. during the art deco period, back in the 1935. Designed in the shape of an Elephant made in polished solid chromed steel attached to a oval black base. The colored plastic tusks were named Ïvoroid” by Ronson. Weight: 597.5 Grams, (1.32 Pounds). Measurements: 82.55 mm by 91.44 mm by 116.84 mm (3.25 x 3.60 x 4.6 Inches). Marks: Signed with the maker's mark label, "FASHIONED BY RONSON". Ronson The Ronson lighter company started as The Art Metal Works in 1897 and was incorporated on July 20, 1898, by Max Hecht, Louis Vincent Aronson and Leopold Herzig, in Newark, New Jersey. Louis V. Aronson was a huge creative driving force for the company; and, with a few business adjustments, including the addition of Alexander Harris (1910–11) as Business Manager, the company soon became World Famous. In the 1910s The Art Metal Works were producing very good quality Hood Ornaments and gained a reputation as a dependable supplier of same. All accounts state that Louis Aronson was a gifted man, who at 16 years old set up a money-making shop in his parent's home - before receiving a U.S. patent for a commercially valuable metal-plating process he developed when he was 24 years old, and he sold half the rights while retaining the Right to Use. "His experiments, which he has been conducting since his early youth, resulted in 1893 in the discovery of a process for electrically producing tinplate. Much money was expended upon improving the process... and has been of great practical value to the whole industry. Retaining its rights, he sold half the patent rights, and later used part of the proceeds to open the Art Metal Works in Newark, N.J. Soon the company was producing a variety of high-quality Lamps, Book ends, Art Statues and other decorative items, prized today for their detail in the collector marketplace. Literature: Urban K. Cummings, Ronson, the World's Greatest Lighter : Wick Lighters...

Nickel Silver Cigar, Cigarette or 420 Cutter in the form of a Repoussé Duck A wonderfully decorative piece, also in great working condition to cut 420 or Cigars. A compliment to ...

A magnificent and rare figural sterling silver cigar cutter; the terminal beautifully cast as a Boar's head retaining two original red stone / glas...

Figural cigar cutter with ash tray in the shape of a maribou, leaning over a bowl. The bird's-eye is the opening for the cigar and the beak is the knife. the stub falls into the bowl...

Silver Metal Bottle Opener Duck, Kitchenware, France 1960s. Vintage bottle opener from the 1960's figuring a duck. Very fine, chiseled details to depict the plumage on the body. N...