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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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A beautiful pair of Rococo revival silver mounted glass claret jugs by Koch & Bergfeld, each of baluster shape, the rippled glass body on an asymmetrical silver rocaille base and foot, with rocaille cast neck and domed hinged cover above a shell-shaped spout mounted with infant winged Bacchantes holding fruiting vines, with a spirally twisted reeded handle Kirchweg, Germany, date circa 1880-90 Fully hallmarked. Height 39 cm. each. Gottfried Koch founded the German silversmithing firm of Koch & Bergfeld in 1829. At that time the small silver workshop and sales outlet was located in the centre of Bremen but before long the space was no longer adequate. Thus the firm moved into larger premises at nearby Kirchweg. At first all the silverware was made by hand but after 1865 machine manufacture was introduced. As production blossomed between 1870 and the First World War the firm not only catered for the home market but exported domestic ware, cutlery and decorative pieces including as silver ship models to Russia, Scandinavia, Austro-Hungary, Spain, Portugal and Italy. At that time up to 800 silversmiths, engravers, beaters, designers and other types of tradesmen were engaged with the firm in the manufacture of solid silver artefacts, sometimes on behalf of Fabergé and directly to the Russian Imperial family. After the Second World War the export market was dramatically affected and this negative trend led, at the end of the 1980s, to the sale of the firm to Villeroy & Boch. More recently the concern was acquired by the jeweller Klaus Hansen, whose firm had been long-term customers of Koch & Bergfeld; he has ensured its continuation, albeit with a much smaller but experienced team of skilled workers http://www.richardreddingantiques.com/collection/silver/a-beautiful-pair-of-rococo-revival-silver-mounted-claret-jugs |
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