A Royal Worcester Persian urn and cover, spherical shape with…
click the photo to enlarge
A Royal Worcester Persian urn and cover, spherical shape with trumpet neck and two gilded scrolling handles, the body decorated with an exotic long tailed bird perched upon a fruiting branch; the cupola shaped, pierced lid with broken finial. Puce mark, 19th century. Height 34 cm

You must be a subscriber, and be logged in to view price and dealer details.

Subscribe Now to view actual auction price for this item

When you subscribe, you have the option of setting the currency in which to display prices to $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

This item has been sold, and the description, image and price are for reference purposes only.
  • Gilding - Gilding is a method of ornamentation whereby a thin sheet of gold metal is applied to items made of wood, leather, ceramics, glass and silver for decorative purposes.

    For furniture including mirrors, the sheet of gold is usually applied over a coating of gesso. Gesso is a mixture of plaster of Paris and gypsum mixed with water and then applied to the carved wooden frames of mirrors and picture frames as a base for applying the gold leaf. After numerous coats of gesso have been applied, allowed to dry and then sanded a coat of "bole", a usually red coloured mixture of clay and glue is brushed on and allowed to dry, after which the gold leaf is applied. Over time parts of the gilding will rub off so the base colour can be seen. In water gilding, this was generally a blue colour, while in oil gilding, the under layer was often yellow. In Victorian times, gilders frequently used red as a pigment beneath the gold leaf.

    Metal was often gilded by a process known as fire gilding. Gold mixed with mercury was applied and heated, causing the mercury to evaporate, the long-term effect of which was to kill or disable the craftsman or woman from mercury poisoning. The pursuit of beauty has claimed many victims, not the least of which were the artists who made those pieces so highly sought after today.
  • Finial - An architectural decoration, found on the upper parts of of an object. On furniture they are usually found on pediments, canopies and shelf supports. On smaller ceramic or silver items, such as spoons, they may decorate the top of the item itself, or the lid or cover where they provide a useful handle for removal.

    Finials have a variety of shapes and forms. They may be urn-shaped, baluster shaped round or spiral, but usually taper into an upper point. Many real life shapes may also be used as finials, such as pineapples, berries, pinecones, buds, lotus and acorns. Sometimes animals such as a lion are depicted, or fish and dolphins.

This item has been included into following indexes:

Visually similar items

A Royal Worcester vase with floral motif. 35 cm high.

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A large Royal Worcester two handled vase, spherical body with trumpet neck, two reticulated handles issue from the neck to the shoulder, raised on a circular domed foot, the body decorated with various floral sprays highlighted with gilding on an ivory gro

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A Victorian sterling silver claret jug Martin, Hall & Co / London /, circa 1881 inscribed 'Victoria Yacht Club/ Prize / 1ST Prize Yacht Race Won By Mr Phipps Turnbulls / Cutter/ Taniwha / 29th April, 1882', approximately 1282 gms silver, 36.5 cm high

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A Victorian sterling silver Grecian style engraved water jug by William Hunter, London 1853, 31 cm high, 800 grams

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.