Featured Your Best of 2024

Those are all gorgeous!

 

Fortunately, it is recorded that this glass cutter was paid a better wage than most.
I feel he deserves to be well more known.
His name was Hieronimus William Fritchie, (not to be confused with the also spectacular English glass engraver William Fritsche). He worked for Hawkes in Corning NY when the pitcher was produced. I've searched for other pieces he's done. Not easy. It's said he only signed the pieces he kept for personal use.
Died at his lathe in 1940.

 

There are too many, but here are some since August

 

Found numerous great things but if we're calling top favorites then this is going to be the Oops, All Cameos post. It was an extremely good year for checking the boxes on different materials, and acquiring high-dollar items for comparatively very very low dollar prices from previous owners who didn't know what they were selling.

Potentially the most $$$$ is this shell cameo in gold carved and signed by the known master Tommaso Saulini, who held a Pope and Queen Victoria as patrons, and who's work is in every major museum. I identified the sitter through a book of Saulini's prep sketches, which included the matching signed and dated (by the sitter) sketch. This is the famous American Union Civil War General Alfred Howe Terry. He personally sat for his portrait in Dec 1860 during his European tour (to study the military) only a few months before signing up for the Union at the start of the Civil War.



A large coral goddess mounted in 14K and potentially sapphires or spinel. The seller thought her costume.



This gent (we've decided likely Socrates, though possibly a commissioned portrait) I got for $25. A large wax portrait on amber. I haven't seen another like it yet.



An ivory Cupid c. 1860 bought in a lot, and ID'd from a blurry photo.



A demi parure of mid-1800 antique tortoise, matching other museum examples. Previous owner thought to be lucite.



A gigantic conch shell (7 x 6.5" / 17.78 x 16.5 cm) with an equally large (2 x 2.75" / 5 x 7 cm) deeply carved Medusa. Haven't been able to find another full-shell conch carving yet.



I have a couple others that I haven't gotten into the cameos post yet, so those'll wait.

 

Amazing @mirana!! Congratulations on your year!

 

Top drawer! WOW!!

 

With pieces like that, I don't mind at all. Stunning finds, mirana!

 

Like most of you, I have so many best of 2024. But here is a selection.

From Friesland, the sweetest little 19th century trinket box, modelled on a Hindeloopen captain's chest:


Love the wee ship.

The other faves are from Java.
First a Javanese silver wedding belt by well known Djokja/Yogya maker TOM (established ca 1890):



A 19th century black lacquered and gilded snake buckle from Surakarta:



And last, an antique silver and suassa buckle from West Java, worn in both the indigenous Sundanese and the Peranakan communities.
(Indonesian suassa is 4 parts gold, 3 parts silver, 2 parts copper. Those are the reddish bits you see.)



According to my books the mind-boggling technique is called 'tatrapan', filigree on a thick silver base, and a layer of tightly positioned appliqués of leaves, butterflies and birds soldered on top of the filigree.
Similar pieces were made in Sulawesi.

 

In a word...yike! The smith knew what he was doing on that one.

 

Fantastic pieces, really nice to see some very special items like these.
I haven't had a very good year for finding rare and beautiful items this year. My best is this vanity box with silver lids, can't really remember if the table it's sitting on was this year but if it was then the table was by far my best piece

 

I envy ! I envy ! That box is beyond fabulous. That table is equally stunning .Davey just showed some inlaid furniture he recovered in a clear out. Ive now decided I have to have a piece .

 

The table is definitely a winner.

 

Here's mine. The first one I technically found a couple years ago, but I've recently found the perfect spot for it and I totally love it now, so I'm going to include it here.

A 9" Inuit stone sculpture by George Arlook (1949-2023):




A hammered copper lamp that I bought for cheap in pieces, then rebuilt and rewired, found a shade for, and that now fits our 1923 house very well:



And last and best, the Navajo weavings I found this year. The big one has been identified as an early third-phase chief's blanket and likely from the last quarter of the 19th century. It'll probably be one of my best finds ever. Found it at a rummage sale.



Edit: I also meant to include this good-sized painting by 'Sam A. Roberts':

 

It's been a few days over a year since I got the table so technically it shouldn't have been on this post. I did restore the table and posted about it on here if you want to see the before and after.
https://www.antiquers.com/threads/translation-needed-on-a-hoshiarpur-table.81272/