Antique Collection

Various exciting new porcelain-making techniques were introduced and perfected in the 19th century. The development of bone china, which was made from the same ingredients as hard-paste porcelain with large quantities of animal bone added, meant that less expensive porcelain became widely available.

Settings for mounting stones come in a variety of models, each of which is designed to create a certain effect when the stone is mounted. In the case of this necklace, each rhinestone is inserted into a setting with a ring-shaped stem so that the stone can then be strung on a thin cord.

This tailored jewelry, made of gold- or silver-plated metal without any stones. It is sober in style and is primarily suited for wearing in the daytime by the kind of woman who likes something special but doesn’t want to call attention to herself.

Pottery and porcelain objects have been made for so many years, in so many cultures and in such a multitude of types that it is impossible to describe all the signs of falsification in any short essay. Generally speaking, however, the detection of a fake depends upon aberrations in manufacture, style and materials—as in any [...]

Few modern homes have room for a large chandelier, but a fine set of candlesticks or a graceful lamp can add a touch of elegance — at a price.
The earlier glass light fittings from the mid- 17th century were designed to hold candles – either singly or in groups – and some designs were extremely [...]

From Wedgwood hedgehogs to towering jardinieres, collectable plant pots abound, but ceramic statues and furniture for outside use are much harder to find and often much newer than they look.
Pots and other containers for growing and displaying plants existed as early as Song (Sung) dynasty China (AD 960‑1279). In Europe, potters were making such containers [...]

Ceramic souvenirs celebrating places and buildings reached a peak with the booming Victorian tourist trade. Today, they can still be picked up cheaply.
There is a long history, dating back to the 18th century, of British potters making small, decorative objects to commemorate places and buildings. The ceramic cottage had as its forerunner the architectural teapot, [...]

Apart from imported Oriental pieces, vases were virtually unknown in Europe before the 17th century. Then they evolved an astonishing range of decorative forms.
Any flower arranger has been frustrated at the seemingly unsuitable shapes of vases for holding cut flowers. In fact, in the world of antiques and ceramics, that is not their main purpose. [...]