The following nine lots of silver are from the Estate Collection of Beverly Allen. Beverley and her husband Maurice travelled to Europe and Asia two or three times a year in the '70s and '80s for their textile business. They sourced women's dress fabric designs in Europe, surveying the latest fashions in Paris and London, visiting design studios, and then had the designs printed in the East. Beverley had trained as a fashion designer and met Maurice working as a designer for an early New Zealand clothing manufacturer. They made a dynamic couple and were leaders in a new way of global sourcing. Not only lovers of fashion design they were also passionate about art and antiques. They would visit art galleries, antique shops and auction houses in London, Paris, south of France, Hong Kong, Beijing, and New York. Meticulous research went into every trip and they would go to great lengths sourcing items that piqued their interest. Not an easy task pre the internet! This international travel built their enthusiasm for building a collection and enriching their home with antiques and fine art from around the world. See also lots 35, 267-271, 320-322, 399 and 474-483. A George IV silver gilt vinaigrette, rectangular with floral embossed and vacant cartouche embossed lid, machine engraved walls and base, the interior with gilded grille with floral piercing. London 1829 by Charles Reily & George Storer. 3.8 cm x 2.7 cm x 1.2 cm. 28gm.
You must be a subscriber, and be logged in to view price and dealer details.
Subscribe Now to view actual auction price for this item
When you subscribe, you have the option of setting the currency in which to display prices to $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.
This item has been sold, and the description, image and price are for reference purposes only.
- Cartouche - An ornamental panel in the form of of a shield, oval or rectangular scroll with curling edges. It may be carved into the back of a chair or the top of a sideboard, or present on a piece of silver or jewellery, and contain the initials of the original owner, heraldic symbols, or some other inscription, such as the details of a presentation.
In ceramics the term defines the central area of a vase or similar with a decorative border in one of the shapes above, into which a decorative scene or figures have been painted.
- Gilding - Gilding is a method of ornamentation whereby a thin sheet of gold metal is applied to items made of wood, leather, ceramics, glass and silver for decorative purposes.
For furniture including mirrors, the sheet of gold is usually applied over a coating of gesso. Gesso is a mixture of plaster of Paris and gypsum mixed with water and then applied to the carved wooden frames of mirrors and picture frames as a base for applying the gold leaf. After numerous coats of gesso have been applied, allowed to dry and then sanded a coat of "bole", a usually red coloured mixture of clay and glue is brushed on and allowed to dry, after which the gold leaf is applied. Over time parts of the gilding will rub off so the base colour can be seen. In water gilding, this was generally a blue colour, while in oil gilding, the under layer was often yellow. In Victorian times, gilders frequently used red as a pigment beneath the gold leaf.
Metal was often gilded by a process known as fire gilding. Gold mixed with mercury was applied and heated, causing the mercury to evaporate, the long-term effect of which was to kill or disable the craftsman or woman from mercury poisoning. The pursuit of beauty has claimed many victims, not the least of which were the artists who made those pieces so highly sought after today.
- Embossed / Repousse - Embossing, also known as repousse, is the technique of decorating metal with raised designs, by pressing or beating out the design from the reverse side of the object.It is the opposite of chasing, where the decoration is applied from the front. An embossed or repoussed object may have chasing applied to finish off the design.
- George Iv - George IV (1762 ? 1830) was king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and king of Hanover from 1820, until his own death in 1830. From 1811 until his accession in 1820, he served as Prince Regent during his father's final mental illness.
In English furniture design, his reign from 1811 to 1830 is known as the Regency period.
This item has been included into following indexes: