It has been a while since I made a post so I will be making one now. A few years back I purchased a scent bottle with a sterling marked top and collar, from a customer who came into the store and told me she had purchased it about 10 years earlier from an antique store up north. She knew virtually nothing about it herself and neither did I.
I bought it and when the Antiques Road Show came to town, this scent bottle was one of the items I brought for them to look at. They had their glass expert to look at it and I was very surprised to find out that it was valued at between $800 to $1,000. They told me it was made by a very famous
Venetian art glass maker by the name of
Giovanni Battista Franchini. They dated it at between 1850 to 1860, which amazed me because I never thought it would be that old. That proves that looks can be deceiving. Just because it is in good condition does not mean it is not old. It pays to have a second and sometimes even third opinion when evaluating and item.
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| Franchini, Venitian Glass Scent Bottle |
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| Franchini, Venitian Glass Scent Bottle Reverse Side |
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| Franchini, Venitian Glass Scent Bottle Detail Note the Little Birds Head |
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ReplyDeleteWhen I see a piece like this all I can do is look at it in Awe! This is what antique art glass collecting is all about. this tiny little bottle which is probably not any more than two inches overall is a masterpiece of the glass makers art. Just look at the tiny birds head and the small face and the eyes and the almost microscopic mustachioed man with a hat that is almost hidden in the overall design! All of these tiny images are from minuscule cuts from a long then glass rod that has had the design crafted the length of the rod! Work that only a master can produce. This type of work is often known as Millefiori glass. This is such a great find. There are just so many great thing out there just waiting to be found!
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