Antique 1920 ' S Arts & Crafts Silver And Turquoise Enamel Brooch Bernard Instone
Item History & Price
Antique 1920's Arts & CraftsSilver & Turquoise Enamel Brooch Bernard Instone
~Welcome to my auction for this pretty little early 20th century brooch~
This is a charming brooch following a known style used by the famous arts & crafts designer, Bernard Instone in the 1920's.
Bernard Instone (1891 - 1987) was a prolific designer from Birmingham who won a scholarship to the Birmingham Central School of Art in 1903 aged only 12 years old - he went on to win two furt...her scholarships where he learned silversmithing and jewellery making, by all accounts he was incredibly talented.After completing art school he worked in the Westerham studio of John Paul Cooper where he was later chosen to go to Berlin and work with the German court goldsmith, Emil Lettre and receive further training - whilst working in Berlin he completed a commission for the King of Bavaria.
Instone completed service during the great war and after his he later in 1920 he founded the Langstone silver works in Digbeth.
In a long career Instone was known for his artistic jewellery, silverware, enamel work and particularly his semi precious stone jewellery in the arts & crafts style.
This particular piece is set with a faux matrix turquoise stone - the stone has been nicely crafted from enamel, a discipline that Instone had some expertise in.The hand crafted wire frame has been fashioned from sterling silver and has a 3 petal flower motif at the 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock position.The brooch has a closed back and is clearly marked 'sterling silver' - the back also has a round hinged pin and C clasp mechanism, which is correct for the period.
An older jewellery dealer I've purchased items from in the past has actually met Bernard Instone's son and asked why his father marked his work so infrequently - the simple answer was that his father didn't expect his work to be so sought 70 or 80 years after making them and so wasn't concerned about it at the time - a piece of his worked carrying his B.I mark always carries a premium in its value.
The brooch measures 3cm x 3cm - the total unpacked weight is 8.1g.
The condition of the piece is generally good with no major issues to report - there's a little bit wear to one of the flower petals (see picture 4) - it's more likely to be a manufacturing fault given how it was made with a punch tool - the tool seems to have punched right through the silver as there is a tiny hole - naturally when you'd wear this brooch you'd never see this fault as it's so tiny!I've sold these type of Instone brooches in the past and they are always popular with collectors - the lower price of this item reflects the minor fault listed above.The enamel plaque and front side of the frame is in good order and the brooch looks good when worn.
Please study the images provided to satisfy yourself as to the condition of the item - if you have any further questions please ask and I'll be happy to oblige.
Postage to U.K. addresses is £2.49 (signed for) - postage to international addresses is £9.95 (tracked / signed for).
Thanks for looking.
~Welcome to my auction for this pretty little early 20th century brooch~
This is a charming brooch following a known style used by the famous arts & crafts designer, Bernard Instone in the 1920's.
Bernard Instone (1891 - 1987) was a prolific designer from Birmingham who won a scholarship to the Birmingham Central School of Art in 1903 aged only 12 years old - he went on to win two furt...her scholarships where he learned silversmithing and jewellery making, by all accounts he was incredibly talented.After completing art school he worked in the Westerham studio of John Paul Cooper where he was later chosen to go to Berlin and work with the German court goldsmith, Emil Lettre and receive further training - whilst working in Berlin he completed a commission for the King of Bavaria.
Instone completed service during the great war and after his he later in 1920 he founded the Langstone silver works in Digbeth.
In a long career Instone was known for his artistic jewellery, silverware, enamel work and particularly his semi precious stone jewellery in the arts & crafts style.
This particular piece is set with a faux matrix turquoise stone - the stone has been nicely crafted from enamel, a discipline that Instone had some expertise in.The hand crafted wire frame has been fashioned from sterling silver and has a 3 petal flower motif at the 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock position.The brooch has a closed back and is clearly marked 'sterling silver' - the back also has a round hinged pin and C clasp mechanism, which is correct for the period.
An older jewellery dealer I've purchased items from in the past has actually met Bernard Instone's son and asked why his father marked his work so infrequently - the simple answer was that his father didn't expect his work to be so sought 70 or 80 years after making them and so wasn't concerned about it at the time - a piece of his worked carrying his B.I mark always carries a premium in its value.
The brooch measures 3cm x 3cm - the total unpacked weight is 8.1g.
The condition of the piece is generally good with no major issues to report - there's a little bit wear to one of the flower petals (see picture 4) - it's more likely to be a manufacturing fault given how it was made with a punch tool - the tool seems to have punched right through the silver as there is a tiny hole - naturally when you'd wear this brooch you'd never see this fault as it's so tiny!I've sold these type of Instone brooches in the past and they are always popular with collectors - the lower price of this item reflects the minor fault listed above.The enamel plaque and front side of the frame is in good order and the brooch looks good when worn.
Please study the images provided to satisfy yourself as to the condition of the item - if you have any further questions please ask and I'll be happy to oblige.
Postage to U.K. addresses is £2.49 (signed for) - postage to international addresses is £9.95 (tracked / signed for).
Thanks for looking.
