RZM Fine Arts and Antiques Inc: Ask the Appraiser

Greetings Jon. Please help us with the item we have sent pictures of. We inherited it several years ago from our in-laws. As can be seen, it is sterling silver and quite elegant. We did in fact take it to a local auction gallery recently and we were told it was a champagne holder. This auction house thought it was a very nice item due to its size which is 9 inches tall and 12 inches wide. They weighed it for us, and we were told that it weighs 29 ounces. The auction house wanted to buy the vase for the silver weight, but we declined the offer. When we returned home from this auction house, I looked in the bag that we were carrying this thing in and found a brass cover. That’s my dilemma! The cover fits on the top like a glove. Is this just coincidental or is this cover actually meant for this item? Now I’m wondering if this really is a champagne holder. Why would a champagne holder have a top? The auction house was evasive as to the exact value of this item. Perhaps you can enlighten us as to what this item really is, its age and value. Thank you very much.

Randy 

It amazes me how misinformation is continually spread about antiques. The information you were given is incorrect. The beautiful item you possess is definitely not a champagne holder/cooler. Please take a close look along the interior. You will observe a lip formed along the upper section that extends the circumference of the interior. That lip, as you have pointed out so well, is the location for the pierced brass top, that you found in the bag, to sit upon. That’s the reason it “fits like a glove.” The item you are inquiring about is actually a flower frog vase or, as it was called during the Edwardian period, a posy vase. The removable brass cover itself is known as a flower frog or a ‘holey” insert, used to create structured, balanced flower arrangements. The holes in the removable lid allow stems to be held in place, allowing for creative arrangements. This explains the pierced removable brass top. I will add that it is rare to find the original brass top with the vase. Most of the vases I’ve encountered over the years no longer have the tops as they have been lost to time. I suppose this may be the reason some people erroneously believe it to be something other than what it really is. Now I will fully identify this item correctly for you. The silversmith’s hallmarks punched into the base indicate that it was produced by Graff Washbourne & Dunn, in New York City circa 1910. It was retailed or sold through the prominent Philadelphia jewelers J.E. Caldwell. As stated, it dates from the Belle E’poque, (French for “Beautiful Era”), has a trumpet form which features a flared reticulated rim and foot with pierced vertical scrolls, foliate swags and floral urns, all within medallions. Based on the silver weight of this item, the outstanding quality of the hand chasing, its rarity, and the silversmiths that produced it, the current value of your flower frog vase is $2500 USD. A complete antique sterling silver flower frog vase is a rare find. Thank you for the very detailed photographs.