Ring in the New Year!

If you want to start the coming year with a big bold gesture, this large and lovely antique ring is just the accessory you need.  Handcrafted in gold with a gleaming oval black onyx stone, this ring sits in its original green velvet box from Carl Mayer.  

As is often typical of artisan antique jewelry, the metal does not carry an assay mark.

Born in Prussia, Carl Mayer opened a jewelry store in 1865 at 618 Congress Street in Austin. He died in 1916 and is buried at Austin's historic Oakwood Cemetery. Carl Mayer Jewelers was a fixture in Austin for many decades. In the book, Lady Bird Johnson; An Oral History, the former first lady reminisces about how she and Lyndon Johnson selected her engagement ring and wedding band at the Carl Mayer store.

It is possible, considering the age of the ring and its style, that it is a piece of Victorian mourning jewelry.  During the Victorian period, strict rules regarding the etiquette of mourning the loss of a loved one were developed, partly influenced by Queen Victorian, who wore mourning for the rest of her life after the death of her beloved Prince Albert in 1861. The etiquette set wide variety of rules regarding behavior, including what one should wear and how long a person should properly mourn. Failure to comply would not only be seen as dishonoring the dead but also would reflect adversely on the violator's moral character. For example, a woman was expected to be in deep mourning for two years after her husband’s death, wearing only black garments and accessories. Mourning etiquette applied to jewelry as well. Victorian mourning jewelry used somber, dark-colored materials, such as jet, or, in this example, deep black onyx.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

6881-172

Pretty Kitty!

This big bold vintage brooch is signed by the renown Mexican jewelry designer, Margot von Voorhies Carr, also known as Margot of Taxco.   Of shining sterling silver, with glowing amethyst eyes, this fantastic feline is a purr-fect example of Margot's creative and eye-catching designs. Her jewelry is highly sought after by collectors.   Born in the United States, Margot arrived in Mexico in 1937, where she met and married Antonio Castillo.  They settled in Taxco, a center for the production of sterling silver jewelry, flatware, and objects.  There Castillo opened Los Castillo Taller, where Margot worked as the atelier's principal designer.  After the couple divorced, in 1948 Margot set up her own taller (workshop).  Her pieces incorporated designs inspired by pre-Columbian artifacts and Mexican art.  However, following a fire in 1960 that forced her to move her studio, Margot began to suffer financial difficulties, closing her workshop in 1978. 

On the back, the brooch is clearly stamped "Margot de Taxco." The eagle stamp was issued by the Mexican government and identifies either the city of assay or the manufacturer. In the piece, the eagle carries the number "16" on its chest, the assay number registered to Margot. Other marks are "Sterling," and "5220," with is the production number.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

15145-49

Of Biblical Proportions

This weighty tome is a deluxe beautiful limited edition of the New Revised Standard Version Bible, lavishly decorated with masterpieces of illuminated art from the Vatican Library,  published by Turner Publishing--Oxford University Press in 1995.  It is bound in cloth with intricate gold stamped decorations and gilt edges.  

This volume is a first edition.

The bible is illustrated throughout with richly-colored reproductions of historic illuminations.  The brilliant pictures were produced with a six-color printing process, including a special metallic gold ink.

In addition, there are ornately decorated pages for recording family history, including marriages, births, deaths, baptism, and confirmations.  The pages are all blank, ready to record your family's  important events for passing down through the generations.  This is truly a good book and would be a wonderful gift for a religious scholar, an art historian, or the family genealogist.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

14091-67