Archive for Art Deco
Sulfide Art Deco Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsHave you ever seen pretty cameo type figures set into paperweights or under glass in vintage jewellery? These are white or a silvery white in colour and depict all sorts of things including classical figures a bunch of flowers, a dog , cherub or angel. These white cameos in glass are known as sulfides ( or possibly sulphides).
The sulfides I find most attractive are the winged creature set under glass and over the top of butterfly wings in art deco jewellery. These date from circa 1920s / 1930s and are usually mounted in silver although costume jewellery and gold ones are also sometimes available.
sulphide pendant
The term sulfide is thought to have been given to these little pictures as they originally had a very silver appearance looking like silver which is a little tarnished. The tarnish on silver is silver sulfide. Im not sure if this is true or not but I cant find a better explanation.
Sulphide brooch
Sulfides are not actually made of silver or glass but are a type of porcelain plaque made in the same way as the sprigged cameos on Wedgwood Jasper ware. The porcelain melts at a higher temperature than glass enabling the plaques to be placed into the glass without damage. Heres a Wedgwood cameo to compare the sulphides with
Wedgwood cameo ring
Egyptian Revival Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsHave you ever seen antique or vintage jewellery with Egyptian motifs on it? If so there is a reasonable chance that the jewellery dates from one of the major Egyptian revivals.
Egyptian revivals were the times when all things Egyptian came into fashion. The first main Egyptian revival took place in circa 1870 following the opening of the Suez Canal. The second Egyptian revival occurred in the 1920s following the discoveries of King Tutankhamen’s tomb. Often any jewellery you find with Egyptian symbols will date from one of these eras however you will need to look for other dating clues to confirm this . The second Egyptian Revival is often associated with the art deco era and you can see the Deco influences in many pieces.
The Egyptian symbols you can find in jewellery include Spinx, Scarabs, Cleopatra, Pharaohs, Obelisks, Pyramids, Mummy, and of course dog, cat and bull headed gods.
Egyptian revival jewellery can vary in quality from cheap costume jewellery through to excellent fine gold and silver. Much of the Egyptian revival jewellery from the 1920s is enamel on silver. Some Egyptian revival jewellery is set with real Scarab Beetles, these can be distinguished by their iridescent blue/ green colour. These scarabs are quite delicate so please do take great care of any you find. A good alternative is to find jewellery set with ceramic scarabs which are more durable.
ceramic scarab pendant
I have several pieces of 1920s Egyptian revival jewellery available on antiquesavenue at the moment including some lovely little silver and enamel charms in the shape of Sarcophagus with mummies inside and a Moses basket with baby Moses inside. There are also a couple of pieces set with ceramic scarabs.
Mummy charm
Are you intrested in Egyptian Revival antique jewellery? If so there is a great book you could look at; Egyptian Revival Jewelry & Design published by Schiffer Publishing ISBN 0-7643-2540-X. I’ve a copy here and its full of colourful pictures of genuine Egyptianesque antique and vintage jewellery as well as a bit about similar design on other objects.
Wiener Werkstätte Jewellery
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Back Stamp
Today I’ve come across a piece of vintage jewellery from Wiener Werkstätte one of the great names in design and production from the early 1900s. Pieces made by Wiener Werkstätte are very rare and desirable these days so I am very pleased to be able to show you this vintage brooch
Brooch
This brooch is made of base metal ( copper I think) and is enameled in black and which is a strong art deco style. Fastening on the back with a simple C catch and has an extended pin stem. There is also the full Wiener Werkstätte stamp as you can see here:
If you would like to find out more about Wiener Werkstätte there is a great article on wikipedia.
Art Deco Earrings Colour Change Sapphires
Posted by: | CommentsArt Deco Earrings Colour Change Sapphires
I’ve spent a lot of time investigating these art deco vintage earrings today, they are so beautiful and rare I though I would show them to you.
At first glance , I though I had a nice but unremarkable pair of art deco amethyst set earrings. Then when I put them under artificial light I saw they were a stunning magenta colour which is certainly not something you would expect from amethysts. Out comes the gem testing machine and to my surprise they test as sapphires.
Art deco earrings
These colour change sapphires measures about 1 cm diameter and vary between a blue purple colour and a red magenta – sometimes you see both colours at once. These gems are very very clear and so I suspect that they have been treated in some way to create the colour or are possibly lab grown. I know that these techniques and treatments were available in the 1920s when these earrings would have been made.
Colour change
Any one knowing more about this type of stone , please do get in touch and let me know more.
Colour change sapphire
Art Deco Brooch
Posted by: | CommentsBrooches were as popular during the Art Deco era ( 1920s and 1930s) and they are a popular vintage jewellery collectable During the art deco era brooches followed the fashion of those times and were made in art deco materials, shapes and colours.
Popular art deco materials include Plastics including Bakelite (very new at that time), Chrome, Silver, Platinum ( for the very rich), glass, Lapis Lazuli, marcasites and Rock Crystal. The colours of the time were bright and bold black, white, green, red, orange, yellow and blue. The precious gemstones Diamonds, Emeralds, Sapphires and Rubies clearly fit well with this colour palate as does Jade and black onyx.
Shapes were angular and geometric, just look at this art deco clip its geometric, yellow and made of plastic – a typical art deco brooch:
This vintage clip type brooch is a super piece of art deco jewellery. This is made of an early plastic not sure what might be Bakelite. As this is a clip type brooch it can be worn attached over the neckline or lapel of a piece of jewellery. This art deco clip measures about 5.8 cms long
The art deco brooch had a popular range of themes bold art deco geometrical shapes, travel ( airplanes and boats), Animals ( stylised gazelles for example). Other themes include the crinoline lady which is more 1930s than 1920s.
Here’s a typical art deco brooch made of silver, set with marcasites and with a stylised boat design:
vintage brooch silver marcasite art deco brooch
This silver and marcasite brooch will date from about the 1950s. This is in the shape as an art deco boat and it measures about 4 cms long
You can find these and more vintage brooches on AntiquesAvenue shop
Art Deco Brooch
Posted by: | CommentsBrooches were as popular during the Art Deco era ( 1920s and 1930s) and they are a popular vintage jewellery collectable During the art deco era brooches followed the fashion of those times and were made in art deco materials, shapes and colours.
Popular art deco materials include Plastics including Bakelite (very new at that time), Chrome, Silver, Platinum ( for the very rich), glass, Lapis Lazuli, marcasites and Rock Crystal. The colours of the time were bright and bold black, white, green, red, orange, yellow and blue. The precious gemstones Diamonds, Emeralds, Sapphires and Rubies clearly fit well with this colour palate as does Jade and black onyx.
Shapes were angular and geometric, just look at this art deco clip its geometric, yellow and made of plastic – a typical art deco brooch:
This vintage clip type brooch is a super piece of art deco jewellery. This is made of an early plastic not sure what might be Bakelite. As this is a clip type brooch it can be worn attached over the neckline or lapel of a piece of jewellery. This art deco clip measures about 5.8 cms long
The art deco brooch had a popular range of themes bold art deco geometrical shapes, travel ( airplanes and boats), Animals ( stylised gazelles for example). Other themes include the crinoline lady which is more 1930s than 1920s.
Here’s a typical art deco brooch made of silver, set with marcasites and with a stylised boat design:
vintage brooch silver marcasite art deco brooch
This silver and marcasite brooch will date from about the 1950s. This is in the shape as an art deco boat and it measures about 4 cms long
You can find these and more vintage brooches on AntiquesAvenue shop
Brooches and butterfly wings
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Brooches and butterfly wings
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