Antique French Solid Silver Jardiniere Brass Sterling .950 Minerva Planter

Description

Antique French Solid Silver Jardiniere Brass Sterling .950 Minerva
This is a French first standard .950 Jardiniere with a brass liner. It was made after 1838. I can’t be more precise as the maker’s mark is double struck and therefor illegible.  The decoration is fantastic: a place to monogram it front and back, a devilish horned mask on either end and a basket of flowers on each corner.
It is about 29 cm long and 23 from front to back. The silver weight is 573 gms or 18.4 troy oz.
The guarantee marks are hard to find, one is on a leg, another is in the decoration, but without enough space to be complete. In any case the cartouche of the Minerva mark shows it is .950 fine. The piece has a few condition problems. One of the swags is broken, but shows no loss. We photographed it from the inside and also the outside. It can be repaired but it isn’t necessary. The idem is still sound. It was probably damage by careless polishing. I am presuming a dealer will buy this, but if not we will have it repaired when it is more convenient. The silver is a little out of square, probably when it was damaged. Also one photo shows some of the feet are a little bent. I haven’t straightened them as it is hardly noticeable. Obviously the brass is quite shiny on the outside, it seems pointless to clean the inside. What we are trying to say is that this is an exceptional piece with very minor problems, it just needs to be handled carefully.
PLEASE SEE OUR STORE FOR MORE SILVER, ANTIQUES, AND COLLECTIBLES!
Pictures sell!
Auctiva offers Free Image Hosting and Editing.
The complete eBay Selling Solution.
Track Page Views With
Auctiva's FREE Counter