did ok at an estate sale this AM

[jerseyben]

Did some serious driving this morning. I woke up with no plan and within 20 minutes I had my list of stops and was out the door. The only score for the day was the final stop. It was the 2nd week of the sale and it was PACKED with stuff but it had clearly been picked over. Ended up grabbing a dual wheel style brass kaleidoscope and this really cool silver piece (pictures attached):

It is a "hanau silver" vase from Germany. It is marked with pseudo hallmarks that mimic British hallmarks. Nice piece that I grabbed for the nice price of $20.

Here is a hanau piece from the same maker that brought some pretty strong money. The link is NOT my piece nor is it my auction. Just showing as a rough example.
Magnificent Antique Art Nouveau Sterling Cherubs 4 Glass Decanter Set Germany WK | eBay

Note: Yes, it looks brassy in the pics. It also looks brassy in hand, which is probably why no one else bought it. It is badly tarnished and desperately needs to be cleaned. I polished a small section on the bottom and I instantly knew it was sterling.

 

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[diggummup]

Nice. I hope it sells well. I haven't found a piece of Hanau silver yet, very hard to find.

 

[billjustbill]

Now that's a great find on the Hanau vase! Thanks, too, for the history data.

Bill

 

[tamrock]

Good score... Are you sure the brassy look isn't from a gold wash finish? I've got some very old silver that was gold washed and the silver oxide underneath leached through and gave it a look of brass with old patina. I think that's how it ended up being sold so cheap, because they thought it was brass. I recognized the hallmarks as silver. I had it appraised by Timothy Stenger of Cowan's Auction house and he said they were originally finished with a gold wash and it would be best not to give them no more then a very light and carful cleaning in order not to wear off the very thin gold wash. How's the condition of the cut crystal.?

 

[jerseyben]

Good score... Are you sure the brassy look isn't from a gold wash finish? I've got some very old silver that was gold washed and the silver oxide underneath leached through and gave it a look of brass with old patina. I think that's how it ended up being sold so cheap, because they thought it was brass. I recognized the hallmarks as silver. I had it appraised by Timothy Stenger of Cowan's Auction house and he said they were originally finished with a gold wash and it would be best not to give them no more then a very light and carful cleaning in order not to wear off the very thin gold wash. How's the condition of the cut crystal.?

IMO, my piece is not gold washed. I have seem this phenomenon before on very old sterling where it develops a very brassy tarnish. The crystal looks good. Maybe a tiny flea bite but overall very nice.

 

[diggummup]

IMO, my piece is not gold washed. I have seem this phenomenon before on very old sterling where it develops a very brassy tarnish.

I agree. This is especially true on silver that is not quite sterling like much that comes from European countries such as Germany, Italy etc. .800, .835. Like this plate, it is 800 silver and looks completely brassy from the front side, then you flip it over and bam!