The Silver Antiques Insider

XRF: Seeing Through The Fakes

I finally got the chance to peruse the Fletcher and Gardiner exhibit at the Met this past Wednesday. I examined each luminiferous piece then read the accompanying placards and, more often than not, just shook my head in wonder. I returned home with one burning question. In this world full of fakes and forgeries, how can the curators be so certain that they’ve got the real thing?

Part of me wanted to believe there was a little, artsy know-it-all lurking somewhere behind a shiny green curtain, an expert who could map the provenance and patina of any piece at a mere glance. If you actually take a peek behind the scenes at a major museum these days you’re bound to find, not the Wizard of Art, but a team of technicians working with high-tech gadgets like the X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Spectroscope.

Following the accidental discovery of x-rays by Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895, scientists set about mining the ray’s potential to be employed as an analytical tool. Here’s a simplified version of the notion:

If an object is bombarded with a sufficient amount of high-energy x-rays its atoms will enter an unstable condition. In order to regain stability the atoms must produce their own set of secondary x-rays. These are known as fluorescent x-rays.

“Because each element has a unique set of energy levels, each element produces [fluorescent] x-rays at a unique set of energies, allowing one to non-destructively measure the elemental composition of a sample.” (www.amptek.com)

A series of advances eventually led to the development of the first x-ray spectrometer by Friedman and Birks in 1948. After time, and a few adjustments to the original design, XRF Spectroscopy is now the preferred method for non-destructive elemental and chemical analysis of minerals, metals, porcelain, wood, and glass. The method was employed by NASA astronauts to study lunar rock samples on two different Apollo missions. It has also been applied to a number of other scientific fields such as forensics and archaeology, and the study of fine art and antiques.

When it comes to silver antiques, scientists must compare x-ray results to what we know of the silver manufacturing and production techniques of each particular epoch. For example, before purification by electrolysis became popular in the mid-1800s, decorative silver contained traces of gold, lead, and other natural impurities. If an artifact dated prior to that period does not contain traces of other elements it’s liable to be a fake. Such was the case when a large number of forgeries were found in Arthur Lenssen’s collection of antique colonial silver after it was donated to The Winterthur Museum and Country Estate.

As a collector, the ability to confidently assess the authenticity of an artifact is of utmost importance. All of us here at Nelson & Nelson Antiques want you to know when you’ve got the real deal, alas, we cannot all afford to purchase an XRF Spectroscope and hire a team of personal technicians. So, in future articles, we’ll be doling out practical tips and visual cues that the average collector can use to help spot fakes and forgeries with the naked eye.

Stay tuned!

Meet Georg Jensen

Georg Jensen was born in 1866, the seventh child of a knife grinder from Radvaad, Denmark. As a teen he trained to be a goldsmith in Copenhagen, then enrolled in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts to study sculpture. Upon graduating he was disgusted by the Industrial Age and its tactics of mass production so he “decided to devote his art to making beautiful objects of practical use.” (jensilver.com) He reapplied his skills to the metalwork trade, this time as a silversmith under Mogens Baillin. Eventually, in 1904, he opened up his own tiny studio in downtown Copenhagen.

With the freedom, at last, to do things his own way, Jensen’s creative aplomb permanently reshaped the language of sterling silver design. His unique products were an almost instant international success. Check out these examples from the online catalogue of Nelson & Nelson Antiques.

“Jensen's sensibility reflected a movement that was going on all around him. In England it was called Arts and Crafts, in France Art Nouveau, in Germany Jugendstil and in Denmark skonvirk.” (ibid)

In other circles, it simply became known as The Georg Jensen Style and its effects are apparent.

Looking back on early 20th Century trends it's as though Jensen arrived from the future to dictate the course of decorative design. He frequently collaborated with other designers, most notably Johan Rohde, and openly encouraged them to express their ideas and challenge the status quo. Soon the business expanded to include outlets in New York, London, Paris, Stockholm, and Berlin.

Although his business suffered throughout the 1920s on account of the economic tensions in war-torn Europe, Georg Jensen’s creations continued to dazzle the art world. He won the Grand Prix at the Paris World's Fair in 1925, then again at the Barcelona World’s Fair in 1929, and then again one final time at the World’s Fair in Brussels shortly before his death in 1935. Today, his spirit lives on in his eponymous company and the artists who continue to use his creative principles.

Silversmiths to the Nation: Thomas Fletcher and Sidney Gardiner, 1808–1842

November 20, 2007 – May 4, 2008
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, NY

The American Wing Galleries are gleaming at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. In conjunction with The Winterthur Museum and Country Estate, the Met has put together the very first retrospective devoted entirely to the work of Fletcher and Gardiner, a relatively short-lived but highly significant 19th Century American silversmith firm.

This exhibition features an array of items ranging from the domestic and nondescript to the more outrageous and monumental, such as The Hull Urn. In total, over 100 artifacts are on display.

Visitors are also treated with insights to the silversmith craft and the creative process. A sample of European silver provides some context for these early American works while seven Fletcher and Gardiner pieces are accompanied by original design drawings.

Check out the Met website for more information.

A Different Thanksgiving Classic

In my earliest Thanksgiving memory I’m sitting cross-legged in front of the television while the Dallas Cowboys are playing my boys, the Washington Redskins, in the 1974 Thanksgiving Classic. When Dallas’s starting quarterback, Roger Staubach, left the game due to an injury the ‘Skins were already ahead 16-3 and I thought we had it cinched. I hopped around the room in a celebratory dance then watched in nail-biting horror as Clint Longley, a lithe young rookie, rallied the Cowboys through the second half and eventually won the game with a 50-yard touchdown pass in the final minute.

When dinner was called I dragged my dejected soul to the table. While my family passed the mashed potatoes over and around me I grew mesmerized by the reflective whorls of the flatware pattern and at that very moment, out of heartbreak and spite and the depths of a prepubescent existential crisis, there arose within me a whole new, healthier obsession.

The silverware fad originally came to America by way of the wealthier European colonists. Throughout the 1800s, the discovery of silver lodes and subsequent mining activities in the American West coincided with the foundation of a few highly acclaimed flatware manufacturers on the east coast. By the turn of the 20th century, wealthy Americans, and even some of the middle class, were amassing collections of sterling silverware that rivaled those of their British contemporaries.

Reed & Barton have been producing fine sterling silver artifacts in the city of Taunton, Massachusetts since 1824. In 1906, after three years in development, they introduced their most cherished flatware design, Francis I, showcased here in a prime 18-setting sterling silver flatware service, available only at Nelson & Nelson Antiques. Francis I incorporates a whole cornucopia of leaves and fruit clusters in a lavish, yet commanding design that has graced the tables of three different U.S. Presidents. In its time it set a new standard for craftsmanship and helped carve a name for America in the international silversmith scene.

Francis I flatware by Reed & Barton is my personal Thanksgiving Classic. This Thursday, make sure to set a place for it right alongside Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, The National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation, and, I suppose… the football game.

Enjoy the holiday!

Heads or Tails?

Coin collectors and dealers have joined forces to forge a lawsuit against the State Department that could potentially alter the international trade of fine antiques.

“If the coin collectors prevail, the State Department may be compelled to shed more light on the way it makes decisions on protecting the cultural property of other nations, a process that many art dealers, museum directors and collectors argue has been unnecessarily shrouded in secrecy.”

Read the full article by Jeremy Kahn of The New York Times right here.

Gently, Ever So Gently

With less than a week to go, some of you are probably scrambling to polish your silver in time for your Thanksgiving feast - but don't over do it! If you’re in need of polishing tips and other flatware advice check out this in-depth Do-It-Yourself article and this instructional video.

If you’re still shopping for a flatware service as respectable as your holiday guest list, stay tuned for the next Silver Spotlight article from Nelson & Nelson Antiques.

Kudos To Charles H. Carpenter Jr.

If you enjoyed the previous article and you’d like to learn more about the history of Tiffany & Co. and other American silver manufacturers we highly recommend the work of author Charles H. Carpenter Jr. One particular book, Tiffany Silver, sits in our own library and has been an invaluable resource for us here at Nelson & Nelson Antiques. It’s a thoroughly researched and incredibly detailed history of America’s most renowned silver company that he co-wrote with his wife Mary Grace Carpenter.

To learn more about his life, his work, and his own collection of fine art, check out this sample from Charles H. Carpenter Jr.: The Odyssey of a Collector, an autobiography published by the Carnegie Museum of Art.

Just The Right Time For Chrysanthemum Tea

November’s birth flower, the chrysanthemum, breaches the earth and blooms every autumn. Traditionally, the flower’s appearance is associated with mourning and endurance as we prepare to enter a long winter period of rest, contemplation, and spiritual optimism. Now that cooler weather has finally arrived here in New York City and winter does appear to be on its way, Nelson & Nelson Antiques would like to announce the arrival of a sterling silver Chrysanthemum coffee and tea set from Tiffany & Co.

Chrysanthemum is arguably Tiffany’s most recognizable pattern. It evolved during the Victorian Age while two premier silversmiths, Charles T. Grosjean and the Orientalist Edward C. Moore, were working hard to expand Tiffany’s repertoire. The two shared an appreciation for Persian and Indian floral décor and Japanese aesthetics.

“The Japanese influence was not a revival. Rather it was a revolt against the historicism of the time. The structural simplicity of Japanese art opened up new vistas for painters and craftsmen alike, showing them a way out of the mire of revival styles.” [Carpenter 1987:10]

Grosjean acquired a patent for his innovative Chrysanthemum design in 1880 and it remained a signature of Tiffany’s holloware stock until 1955. These precious items have been sought worldwide by collectors ever since.

This particular seven-piece set, circa the 1890s, is comprised of a tilting hot water kettle, teapot, coffee pot, creamer, sugar, waste bowl, and serving tray. Each piece has a smooth, apple-shaped body with realistic, floral detail that adorns the feet, the lid, and the handles in a fluid, undulating style. It’s a classic nature motif that encapsulates the Victorian Era, the Art Nouveau movement, and the decorative arts of the Far East.

For centuries in Asia, chrysanthemum tea has been said to ensure a long, healthy life. What better way to celebrate the tradition than with an antique sterling silver Chrysanthemum tea set from Tiffany & Co?

For more details, please contact Nelson & Nelson Antiques.

Print References:
- Carpenter Jr., Charles H., and Janet Zapata. The Silver of Tiffany & Co. 1850-1987, Boston Museum of Fine Arts: 1987

Old Silver For The New Victorians

I took advantage of the warm weather a few weeks ago by meeting an old friend for a Scrabble game at Washington Square. Upon arriving early my attempts to stroll around the park were impeded by a throng of baby strollers and at one point I was nearly trampled by a pint-sized stampede. I was reminded of something I’d read this past summer.

It was an article published by The New York Observer (you can read it in full here), in which Lizzy Ratner flashed on a current lifestyle trend of the 20-something set. She claims they lead sensible lives, concern themselves with dinner parties and child rearing, and are determined to reap the benefits of hearth and home. In short, they’re harkening back to the styles and ideals of “Rule, Britannia.” They are part of a young, success-driven generation that she christened The New Victorians.

“The current obsession with food preparation…is totally New Victorian. So, too, the current rage for blousy, maternity-style tops, mutual funds and bathroom renovation.”

Ratner's observations ring true. According to this article by Myreille Simard, the new season has brought with it a revival in Victorian interior design motifs: rich tones, Rococo prints, and wall murals. All that’s missing is some heavy wooden furniture with deep, stuffed upholstery, and, of course, an abundance of sterling silver antiques.

Sterling silver production reached an apex in the Victorian Age. At the height of the British Empire crafters were gifted with the finances and the incentive to take their creations to the next level. In an epoch noted for industrial advancements, most of these artisans worked with their hands. They paid particular attention to detail and imbued each piece with a unique, human touch. Because sterling silver “offers the durability necessary for routine wear without compromising its aesthetic qualities” (www. singbling.com) their art still leaves a lasting impression.

“My Nan owns some Victorian silver,” said Emelia Luckhurst. I hadn’t seen her since our boarding school days together and I wasn’t all that surprised to learn that she’s now a mother of three. Her youngest daughter played in the sandbox under the watchful eye of a nanny while Emily and I sat, drinking tea, with a Scrabble board between us. I asked her to describe the collection. “The one I remember most is a figurine - two little baby birds nestled together. Something about it really drew my attention. It wasn’t that big,” she said cupping her hands, “but it was so beautiful.”

Indeed, the Victorian aesthetic is synonymous with elegance and fine detail. See it for yourself in the online catalogue of Nelson & Nelson Antiques. Each Victorian sterling silver artifact holds an air of historical prestige and the warmth of a handcrafted tradition. Purchasing one is a worthwhile investment that reflects a refined taste.

So, whether you’re searching for a centerpiece to elevate your dining experience or an objet d’art to act as a conversation piece in a crowded drawing room, know that sterling silver antiques are an essential element of any New Victorian home.