Tiffany Sterling Silver Shell & Floral Teapot c1877 Start Price USD 2,950.00 Current Price USD 2,950.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price USD 3,250.00 Reserve Price - Start Time Wednesday, September 03, 2008 End Time Saturday, September 13, 2008 Location New England See more about 'Tiffany Sterling Silver Shell & Floral Teapot c1877 ' Description MUSEUM QUALITY c1877 TIFFANY STERLING SILVER TEAPOT; UNIQUE STEPPED COMPRESSED CIRCULAR DESIGN; PROFUSION OF SHELL, LEAF, STREAMING FERN AND FLORALS; ELEGANT "FLOWER BALL" FINIAL ON MEIJI INSPIRED CHYSANTHEMUM SURROUND; NEVER MONOGRAMMED; PRISTINE; 28 OUNCES This is a breathtakingly hand crafted, c1877 Tiffany sterling silver teapot. Unique in both form and richness of detail. Worthy of the most advanced private or institutional collection. The teapot in rarely observed "stepped" gently compressed circular design. Each "step" displays distinct, lavishly detailed shell and floral decoration. From the base, wide band of layered shell within ruffled acanthus oval frame. Satin chased ground above. Followed by raised centre band of shell, thick curling vine and delicate florals. Just above, wide band of larger flowers, in an array of artistic forms. Amidst ruffled, satin chased leaf and long, streaming razor tip fern. Beautifully crafted bell domed recessed cover. Topped with elegant raised "flower ball" finial. Meiji inspired twenty eight petal chrysanthemum surround. A design feature we've never before observed in this context. Clearly some impish Tiffany silversmith added this single, striking Japanese touch, to an otherwise classic design. Boldly fashioned streaming floral cap spout. Rising from deep ruffled, layered and chased acanthus mount. Layered acanthus, fern and floral decorated C-scroll handle. Elegant, three leaf and oval lower terminal. Never monogrammed. This c1877 Tiffany sterling silver teapot is 9 3/4 inches handle to spout and 6 inches tall. Exceptionally thick, heavy guage sterling construction, weighs 28 ounces. In excellent condition. Near pristine. Appears little, if ever used. Rich, lustreous sterling patina throughout. Stands perfectly firm on table or serving tray. Cover closes flush to base. Interior perfectly free of discoloration. Handle secure, and with original ivory heat stops. The profusely carved shell, streaming fern, leaf and floral decoration retains most all of its original crisp, vibrant hand chased detail. Well struck hallmarks to underside. Including Tiffany's "4686" pattern number, denoting c1877 production. For the discerning collector of the finest third quarter 19th century Tiffany sterling. A profusely decorated c1877 Tiffany shell, leaf and floral teapot. With unique "flower ball" finial. And Meiji inspired chrysanthemum petal surround. In near pristine condition. Never monogrammed. Please feel free to inquire directly about this, or any item we've listed. Whether the item is alone or part of a set. We very much welcome your interest. We are collectors first. As such, we are quite easy to work with. We happily combine items when shipping, saving you costs. We ship twice weekly, usually US Postal Priority. Fully insured for domestic packages, and air parcel overseas. We charge a bit more than actual cost for custom size boxes, shipping materials and to pay for professional packing. We make great effort to accurately describe each item listed. Returns are accepted, if either condition, country of origin or dating is significantly incorrect. In such cases we refund your shipping costs as well. Like you, we are only human, and make mistakes. Hopefully, not too many. Remember, the items you see are antiques. Hence, have an expected amount of wear from normal use. As such, returning an item because we failed to mention the tiniest bit of wear, or barely discernible flaw is not acceptable. Nor do we accept returns based on buyer's remorse. Nor change of taste, or because a buyer did not realize how "small" four inches might be once in hand. Please note, Massachusetts residents are subject to sales tax. We have over 4220 feedbacks. And, are quite proud of our 99.9% rating. We received favorable notice in the March 12th, 2006 New York Times. Page 8, Business Section, in a well written article on silver collecting. Copy furnished upon request. From our personal collection, an elegant mid 19th century coin silver basket, from John and Edward Moore, of Tiffany fame. Illustrated in the cover article of May/June 2008 Silver Magazine, page 27. Enjoy....and good fortune in your bidding. Place a Bid!