HM 1916 Birmingham, our Victorian "message" ring with the word "Mizpah" engraved on either side (Miz on one side of the turquoise forget-me-not and Pah on the other side) is an example of the romantic message jewelry that was so popular in the era. The word Mizpah is a Hebrew word that symbolizes the bond between two people separated by an act of war or other forced estrangement...

The vases, English from circa 1850, sit on a rococo style attached base with light blue and gilt molded leaves for the base of a fluted and molded vase with a flaring and serrated top rim. The molded flowers are painted in bright enamels. The porcelain is bright white. Both have a sticky label on the underside for the Hackman Collection with the Number,”80” presumably an inventory number. They are 6 inches tall and 4 inches at the widest.

Condition: no chips cracks hairlines or repairs...

A very good late 19th - early 20th century Tibetan ewer, crafted of thin, hand-worked sheets of what is probably some type of brass/bronze amalgam that has acquired a rich chocolate patina over time, with deep repousse and chasing techniques forming the decorative bands along the shoulder, neck, and lid of vessel, a well-formed makara shaped spout and handle, all atop a splayed footed base. Overall a very nice example with legitimate age, good presence, and very decorative...

Unmarked, but likely Minton, soft paste porcelain covered sauce tureen "Feuille de choux" pattern with a rose finial. These knock-offs of 18th century Sevres were popular from the mid-19th century (c.1850)onward and Minton made many very good ones. With the lid it is 5 1/2 inches (14 cm) tall, 7 1/4 inches (18.4 cm) long, and 4 inches (10.2 cm) wide.

Condition: The lid has no damage and slight wear to the gilding on one edge...

Pair of Victorian Classical sterling silver bowls. Made by Tiffany & Co. in New York. Each: Round with plain well and curved and fluted sides. Turned-down lobed rim. Four ball supports Fully marked including maker’s stamp, pattern no. 10374 (first produced in 1889), and director’s letter M (1873-91). Excellent condition.

Dimensions: H 1 1/4 x D 5 3/4 in. Total weight: 7 troy ounces. #BX708

You would be forgiven if you thought that this vase was made by Tiffany since its maker, Alton Manufacturing, hired away several Tiffany glass makers to start its production of competing wares in 1907, the only year the company produced glass.

This example of the Trevaise branding, analagous to favrile, has a flaring bulbous form with mauve ground and freely flowing and lingering tendrils with leaves attached, punctuated with white flowering blossoms...

This porcelain demitasse cup and saucer was produced in Germany by Hutschenreuther in 1914. It was produced in their Dresden hand painting division. The saucer has a diameter of 4 3/8 inches and the cup is 1 ¾ inches high. The cup has an unusual shape with a pedestal base and a hexagonal shape (6 sided). The ground color is deep cobalt blue. There is a reserve on the front of the cup containing a hand painted scene. There is a winged cherub and a fairy. The cherub is writing on a tablet...

A French footed cabinet cup and saucer with painted decoration, the cup with a fox, the saucer with a rocky landscape. Marks for Flamen-Fleury, Paris, 1820-35. Height 4”/10 cm, diam. of saucer 5 ¼”/13,5 cm. Condition: Fine, except for some rubbing to gilding, esp. inside the cup.

5218-21: English, Bilston, late 18th century, patch box these memento boxes were popular at the end of the eighteenth century and frequently given as tokens of friendship and love. Usually oval in shape, but also circular and rectangular, there decoration reflected the popular styles of the day. For example, by the 1790s Neoclassical style swags, doves, hearts, and borders were the most commonly used decoration of the day. This box reads "Unity is the bond of society."

Silver-plated (with 16 baths) manufactured by Reed & Barton, marked and numered on the bottom. Beautiful leaf decor surround top and bottom of bowls. Circa 1900.
Measures: 9.75" (24.76 cm) diameter X 6" (15.24 cm) tall.

Lovely sterling silver ladle with a masque of Bacchus or some other satyr on the end of the handle. Decorative beading outlines the handle and the bowl. The reverse is marked "925 Sterling 1000". Although by an unknown American maker, this piece probably dates to the late 19th century when Gorham, Tiffany and other quality silversmiths were using lots of mythological motifs. No monogram and in excellent condition. 5" long.

Fine Silver Covered Dresser Box, 1795, Germany, with reticulated lid and sides, the sides with garland draperies, with four ram's head sides terminating in hoof feet, now lacking the glass liner. Weight; 12 troy oz. Size; Measurements are H.- 4 7/8 in., W.- 7 1/8 in., D.- 4 1/2 in. Condition Report; Consistent with age.

This is a beautiful Steuben jade glass decorated with acid cut-back floral motif. The heavy vase is approximately 9 1/2 inches tall, 6 inches wide and 3 inches deep. Except for a tiny spot on the top rim that was probably caused during fabrication and a couple of minor chips to the raised decor (see last two pictures), the vase is in very good condition. Like typical Steuben acid cut-back objects, the vase is unsigned - but it is guaranteed to have been made by Steuben...

A Reed & Barton sterling silver pillbox or dresser jar 1900-1910. This 1-5/8" across lidded jar is stamped STERLING M150 8 with the Reed and Barton silver mark and it weighs 16.8 grams. It has an ornate REB monogram, and the top extrudes slightly, possibly from being made to set in a travel case. The interior is lightly gilded. It is in excellent condition with no dents, bends, corrosion, losses, damage or repairs...

Very nice Imperial Russian clear pressed glass tea box. The design features fans, strawberry diamonds and Russian cane motifs. The box is bound with silverplated mountings and a lock. The box was almost certainly made by the “OtyM.F. Atelier”. Locked tea boxes were a holdover from earlier days when tea was a precious commodity that had to be kept safe from marauding servants.

Origin: Russia, ca. 1900...

Very unusual Victorian sterling silver grapefruit spoon with a wonderful plique-a-jour enamel assymetrical handle decorated in six shades of translucent enamel. It is quite unusual for plique-a-jour enamel to have been used on a grapefruit spoon, as it was so fragile that it was usually reserved for more delicate pieces like demitasse spoons...

Meissen porcelain cup and its holder, a Turkish “Fincan” and “Zarf”. Unmarked, Marcolini period (1774-1814), for the Ottoman market. Decoration of roses (gül) in Famille rose enamels and gilt. Height when put together "2 / 5.2 cm. Condition: fine.

A Chelsea ecuelle and cover, fulsomely painted with fancy and aquatic birds. Applied flowers and leaves decorate the bases of the twig handles, while the uncommon (but original) knop on the lid is a beautiful flower painted in three colors. The ecuelle's interior features a large convolvulus spray.

The condition of this gem is superb, with bright colors and no missing paint. There is a very small spot of high quality and invisible restoration to the bottom of the knop's stem, where it meets t...