Who doesn't love old silver pieces like this? Their elegant curves and intricate patterning and piercings immediately arouse in us a very different age even though they are emblematic of the beginnings of mass production; I suppose they existed in between the old world of artisans and the new world of industrialization. And now when we spot them we appreciate their patinas that current craftspeople try and fake with special chemicals but the real thing only serves to authenticate their age and their longevity, as well as visually heighten the contrast of the Art Nouveau etchings on their bases by bringing out those patterns. Though these pieces may have been easy to find at thrift stores the nation over, they are becoming more and more collectible, rarer and rarer.
