Topic: One for KevH - Venetian Scents & Murrine

[johnphilip]

Hi Kev checkout item 180465641516 on ebay , scent bottle completely knackered sold £500 plus , i believe because of a few early unusul canes in it , sold about a week ago .  I know canes are your fetish . JP :thup:

[KevinH]

Hi John.

Yes, canes are one of my fascinations - but the 19th century Venetian portrait ones are really "just an interest" to me. I leave those to the real experts on such matters, such as our very own GMB member "jamalpa" (who also got into Ysart weights long before me when even signed ones could be bought for around Uk£40!!).

But yes, I assume it was the canes in that bottle that drew the high bid.

[jamalpa36]

Hi John

As I got a mention in Kev's reply I thought I would add my two pennyworth.

This bottle was made by an unknown maker around 1881.

The murrini in it, were not rare and in the main were not the best quality.

The lion of st marks reading the book is one of the more complex.

A few years ago one lady dealer used to price her bottles at £100 per face and this bottle had 9 faces or part faces.

The Americans have always charged more for their bottles.

The damage however should have reduced the value of this bottle by quite a lot

I missed this offering but would certainly have dropped out at before £200 with that amount of damage.

These bottles are quite rare with faces and I have only managed to buy 30 in the last twenty or so years.


£300-500 is the norm for a good example

If you find an earlier example c1840 by Franchini you must expect to pay > £1000

Roy

[johnphilip]

Thanks Roy, i knew a little bit about these bottles as i have two , but no canes unfortunately although they are in great condition , i bet i would only get a fraction of that money .  I sent the thread to Kevin but it was meant for all the weighties on the forum ~ i also thought the canes were a bit naff ...! but Knowledge is Power and you have just increased my knowledge . Many thanks JP    :thup:

[jamalpa36]

Hi John

Glad to have been of some assistance.

You're right in that the bottles without faces or canes, some only have a few canes and no faces, sell for a lot less. I have seen them sell for about £100 but I bought one for £30. The nicest ones have faces of Popes, members of the Austro-Hungarian royalty and early Italians such as Garribaldi. As well as faces you also get the The Rialto Bridge and some Birds.

I attach, I hope the first bottle I ever found in Portobello Road.

Roy

[johnphilip]

Wow i just love that , Roy  $$$$$$$$ jp :mrgreen:

[alexander]

I just love the antique Venetian/Muranese canes, especially the Rialto bridge and faces, amazing work!
I haven't been able to find any for myself and with these prices I'd need to get lucky I guess, I will settle for drooling over Roy's pieces tho

If I may, I posted about this figurine a good while back, it has me baffled. (*)
Two distinct face canes, not Franchini or Moretti, any thoughts?
15/16 Century or more recent fare?

Thank

(*) Mod: Alexander's original thread can be seen through the link below:
http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,20588.msg116606.html#msg116606

[cfosterk]

the unusual colouration of the canes suggest C20th

[rocco]

Here is mine!

Around 7 cm high. 6 portrait canes.

Michael

[chopin-liszt]

  I saw this thread and these pieces for the first time yesterday. I was dumbstruck. I had to spend last night considering what to say. It took ages for any words to appear!

They have a luminosity I'm used to seeing only in mediaeval copper enamel images.
With the faces poking out at odd angles from the bottle, they look to me like a 3-D model of one of the strange concoctions of torture apparatus from a Hieronymous Bosch painting...

Just saying; "Ooh they're gorgeous and fabulous" is not nearly sufficient.

I wondered, are they lined with foil to give that luminosity, or is it just the depth of the glass?