Stain Glass Bride's Basket with Silver Plate, ca. 1875
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GUEST:
It belonged to my grandmother and then my mother and then I chose it after my mother died. I had two brothers. They were kind enough to say since I was a girl, I could go first. And so I said, "This is the piece I would like," and my brother said, "Oh, that's fine. I'd just put avocadoes in it if I had it."
APPRAISER:
(chuckling) Oh, I love that, I love it. What do you know about the silver part of this?
GUEST:
Well, it is Meriden and it is silver plate. And Meriden, I think, was in Connecticut. And the satin glass I think is very unusual because it's two colors-- pink on the top and blue underneath.
APPRAISER:
That's correct. The silver plate is actually made by Wilcox, and they are in Meriden, Connecticut, but it is made by Wilcox.
GUEST:
Okay, I'm glad to know that.
APPRAISER:
The silver plate is circa 1875. They referred to these as bride's baskets.
GUESTS: Oh!
APPRAISER:
And the silver was made separately with the Wilcox company, and then the glass would have been made by numerous companies. You would go in and pick out your silver plate holder and then go in and pick out your glass basket to fit it. And you do have a beautiful satin glass bowl. Now, I'm going to lift it out of the holder. Can you hold the back of the holder so it doesn't tip over?
GUEST:
I'd be glad to.
APPRAISER:
And gently turn this over. And what we have here is a blue herringbone pattern. Some people call it zigzag. It has a number on it; that's the decorator's number. And it's gilt in the back, and then we have the ruffles all the way around the piece-- beautiful ruffling that's in perfect condition. It doesn't have any damage. It's a two-color piece, which, as you mentioned, is a rarity in satin glass. It's gilded on the inside with the ferns and the dragonfly. The interesting thing, too, is the shape of the piece. It's a heart-shaped piece, very unusual in satin glass or, actually, most glass. The base then is quadruple plate, which means it's been plated four times. It has a bead border. It's clearly marked on the bottom. You have to see it with a magnifying glass to see the "Wilcox."
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
This had to be special, because they had to make it to fit the heart shape.
GUEST:
Yes, yes.
APPRAISER:
So this was more special than an average bride's basket. If you saw this in a fine antique show, you would see a retail value of $2,500 to $3,500.
GUEST:
Wow. That's... that's exciting. I'm amazed. (laughing)
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