The Silver Antiques Insider

Ring In The New Year With Antique Masterpieces from Nelson and Nelson

We're in the thick of the holiday season, and if you're looking for particular inspiration to welcome in 2012, we suggest you explore the fine silver antiques from the collection of Nelson and Nelson. Here's to a happy and healthy New Year to you and your family!

Turn your New Year's Eve supper into a exceptionally special occasion with this magnificent museum-quality sterling silver bowl, made circa 1884 by Whiting Manufacturing Co. It is superbly decorated with a fabulous repousse design of sea shells in the Aesthetic style. The assorted shells include a variety of scallops, clam-shells and oysters and have been artfully set against a background of seaweed and organic marine motifs. The hallmarked bowl is in excellent, pristine condition; the silver has a lovely soft and pleasing patina and the truly exceptional workmanship of the repousse work is clean and crisp with wonderful definition on all the decorative elements. For more information on this unique, one of a kind piece that is a "must-have" for any connoisseur of fine quality silver, click here.

Toast 2012 with this beautiful set of twelve sterling silver goblets in a wonderful Victorian design by the premier American silversmiths at Gorham, circa 1917. Each goblet stands on a circular, trumpet-shaped base and has a large, rounded cup. The base and cup have been elaborately chased and repoussed with grape clusters, vines, and leaves in high relief, rendered with various textures. The decoration frames a cartouche engraved with the initials TWR. The dynamic and exuberant decoration on this goblet resembles the Baltimore silver of Kirk & Sons and demonstrates the tremendous skill of the Gorham silversmiths. For more information, click here.

What's a party without a proper martini? This impressive late-19th-century Chinese silver cocktail shaker is chased and engraved with an allover genre scene on a stippled background. The lid is cork lined and the spout has a screw-off cover attached to the spout with a collar and chain. The shaker is hallmarked on the underside of the base with “C.J.”, sterling and a Chinese character mark. For more information on this true statement piece, which would be a focal point in any dining room or library, click here.

Just Desserts With Beautiful Antique Silver!

October is National Dessert Month, and since there's nothing better than a gorgeous cake or pile of exotic fruit presented in a stunning piece of antique silver service ware, Nelson and Nelson thought we'd provide some sweet inspiration. Remember, life's too short to skip our favorite course! 


Looking for a sophisticated way to serve ice cream? Take a look at this lovely pair of sterling silver compotes by Georg Jensen, Copenhagen, Denmark, and designed by Johan Rohde, circa 1925. The compotes are hallmarked on the underside of each base with the Jensen crown hallmark for pieces made between 1925 and 1932, the GJ 925 S mark, Johan Rhode’s hallmark, Denmark, and style #242. There is also a presentation inscription on the underside of each foot commemorating a 25th wedding anniversary, dated January 5, 1928, indicating that this pair of compotes was made during that time. Love is sweet! For more information, click here. 

This stately silver two-tiered crystal compote would be exquisite for displaying cake or cupcakes, and was made in the Austro-Hungarian Empire circa 1840. The neoclassical design of this two-tiered masterpiece features a Greek style female figure holding the upper dish, with acanthus decorated stem and ancient animal form double-ring handle. For more information, click here.

Did You Know It's National Iced Tea Month?

According to the Tea Association of the United States, iced tea is a "distinctly American" beverage developed by a man named Richard Blechynden at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Up until the turn of that century, most of the tea quaffed by Americans was actually green tea from China and Japan. It appears that Mr. Blechynden, as the India Tea Commissioner, was eager to drum up some attention for black tea from South Asia, which most Americans were unfamiliar with. Since fair visitors were unwilling to drink hot tea in the sweltering heat, the commissioner dispensed brewed India tea through iced pipes for free to the thirsty crowds.

The chilled tea was a success, and after the fair was over Blechynden installed his iced-tea apparatus at Bloomingdales in New York City. Today, a whopping 85% of all tea consumed by Americans is iced.

To celebrate this tasty tidbit of Americana, why don't you whip up a round of iced tea for friends and family in one of our beautiful pitchers?

This charming balloon-shaped American glass pitcher, circa 1915, is etched with two baskets of flowers and vertical trellises. A hammered sterling silver overlay band adorns the neck and spout of the pitcher. For more information, click here.

This tall, beautiful red glass sterling silver overlay pitcher was made by Alvin Corp., Providence, Rhode Island, circa 1890. It's decorated with a heavy gage ornate scroll design, the handle is of a full overlay design and in the center of the pitcher is a lovely monogram plate engraved with a decorative script "G". For more information, click here.

 

This lovely American glass pitcher circa 1910 is carved with a decorative intaglio motif of grapes and leaves and adorned with a sterling silver overlay design on the edge of the pitcher that features a complimentary grapes and leaves design. For more information, click here.

Tea Time With Beautiful Antique Silver Brewers

There are so many coffee specialists out there that fret about the origin of the bean, its grind, and brewing. But for the tea aficionados among us, we know that nothing's better than a full-leaf tea (nothing broken, and no dust), that delivers the perfect pot. The best way to do this is with a roomy, non-flavor adding tea brewer. The beautiful tea balls from Nelson and Nelson are a beautifully aesthetic, antique--yet fully functional--way to create your perfect cup, or pot, of tea. Regardless of whether you prefer your tea with milk and sugar or lemon (or, as the Russians do, with jam), the tea balls from Nelson and Nelson guarantee that you'll brew the ideal pot. For the whole assortment of lovely Nelson and Nelson tea accessories, please click here.

This American sterling silver tea ball is formed as a group of figural flowers. Very fine detail. Hallmarked on the inside rim with Sterling and the Webster hallmark.

This American sterling silver tea ball of round shape with fleur de lis decoration has the face of the north wind depicted in 4 spots around the body of the tea ball. Hallmarked on the inside rim with sterling and the Webster hallmark.

This American sterling silver tea ball in the shape of the liberty bell is pierced on the base to strain the tea. Hallmarked underneath with the Webster hallmark.

Unique Antique Silver From The USS San Francisco

A while back I wrote about the tradition of ship's silver, which is silver commissioned by the U.S. Navy and used for ceremonial or diplomatic events on board.

Now you can own a unique piece of ship's silver, courtesy of Nelson and Nelson.

This sterling silver and gold-crested champagne goblet bears the coat of arms of the U.S. Navy Department and the coat of arms for San Francisco. The goblet was probably manufactured as part of the silver service made for the USS San Francisco, a New Orleans-class heavy cruiser which was launched in 1933. The USS San Francisco was docked in Pearl Harbor on the fateful day of December 7th, 1941. It escaped unscathed and continued to serve until it was decommissioned in 1959. This heavy gauge goblet is in the elegant, sinuous 1930s style and was made by Shreve and Company of San Francisco. For more information on this collector's piece, click here.

Accessorize Your Stogie With An Antique Silver Cigar Cutter

Continuing with last post's theme on gentlemanly vices, what could go better with a fine Scotch than an even finer cigar? Nelson and Nelson offers an array of antique cigar cutters--from the classic to the exotic--in a range of price points. For our full collection of antique cigar cutters, please click here.

A classic Austrian antique silver ivory cigar cutter circa 1900 features a figural boar’s head deeply etched in silver to perfectly recreate the coarse, brittle fur of the boar. The boar's snout becomes the ideal insert for the cigar’s tip as the hinged cutter bears down from above. A small button underneath releases the cutter. Fully hallmarked and stamped with the G.A.S. maker’s mark. It has a fabulous patina and is in excellent condition.

This is truly a cigar aficionado’s delight! A sterling silver box with a cigar-cutting mechanism has a small button that when pressed releases and reveals a match box behind the match striker plaque below the button. Fully hallmarked and in very good condition, the box was made in London by Cooke & Kelvey in 1916 and retailed in Calcutta.