Category Archives: English Hair Comb

Royal Tiaras

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I had to do it. :-) Sothebys had an auction of royal tiaras in Switzerland. I chose three tiaras and a coral parure to share with everyone. I can’t pick which one is my favorite.

This emerald and diamond tiara, c. 1870, was formerly the property of a Belgian Princess. The octagonal, step-cut, and hexoganal emeralds at the top weigh 7.58, 7.26 and 8.05 carats, respectively. The two diamonds around the larger center emerald are 2.93 and 3.85 carats, respectively. The tiara is designed as series of bows entwined with foliate sprays. It sold for $341,213.




A German noble family in Westphalia owned this stunning emerald and diamond tiara, c. 1910. It was worn at an official dinner given by Kaiser Wilhelm II by an ancestor of the present owner and sold for $253,555.




This aquamarine and diamond Belle Epoque tiara was part of the estate of Christian, Lady Hesketh. It has graduated aquamarine clusters interspersed with sprays of diamond myrtle leaves. Sale price: 97,504.




Finally, we have a coral parure, c. 1850. It has the necklace, earrings, pin, bracelet, and in the center is the hair ornament. It could have been worn either as a tiara or a barrette. It sold for $34,938.

The Great Ivory Comb Debate

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Recently, some of us saw a gorgeous ivory comb go on Ruby Lane for $60. It was sold to neatstuffdave, who put it on ebay. I wrote to the original dealer in horror, and told her I thought it was a $600 comb. Dave thought it was worth about $200. It sold to jcollect (a serious collector) for $192, and she knew it was worth more. I was shocked. Here it is:




On April 16, a beautiful Chinese ivory comb, probably made for the export market, went for $262.77. It mirrors with peigne Josephine style with the decorative balls on top and combines it with a Chinese theme of two people sitting under a tree. A beautiful comb.




Finally, today, a beautiful peigne Josephine-style ivory comb, drop-dead gorgeous, flawless condition, sold for $743 — the correct valuation in my probably way-too-snobby, obsessed opinion. ;-)




So I have a few questions for the collectors: Was the first one c. 1890, and the one that went for $743 earlier, like c. 1850? Why did the first one go for $192, and this one go for $743? Absolutely no discoloration in the peigne Josephine? Luck of the draw? I’m lost here. Opinions? :-)

The Queen’s Mad Hatter

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As I was watching coverage of Queen Elizabeth II’s visit to Jamestown, VA, I couldn’t help marvelling at her glorious, whimsical, colorful, asymmetrical hats. They seem to come right out of Alice in Wonderland. Her milliner is Philip Somerville, of 38 Chiltem Street, London. Here is a small collection.

Some Lovely Things on Ebay

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There have been some absolutely gorgeous things sold recently on ebay. A French silver and gold tiara with seed pearls, c. 1810, had rings in the back perhaps for a veil, and a few metal comb prongs in the back, too, to hold it in place. The seed-pearl microbeading reminds me of antique French purses.  It went for $1025. I must admit I cried because I didn’t win. This is one of those once-in-a-lifetime finds for tiara lovers.








This beautiful plique a jour peacock comb with a seed pearl and art glass inserts had the DRGM mark. It stands for Deutsches Reich Gebrauchsmuster (German Reich Registered Design), and certifies that the piece was made before 1945. It sold for $1017.

Plique-a-jour is an enameling process. The enamel is laid between thin raised metal lines and heated. The finished piece has transparent enamel held between the thin metal wires. Making jewelry translucent followed the artistic movements of the day, as Tiffany’s favrile glass burned with light and painting became impressions of light.




Two French art nouveau horn hair pins with seed pearls sold at an Ebay Live Auction for $516.31. I don’t know for sure, but they looked like Louis Aucoc to me. What value is in a name? Here is a comparison between the hair pins and an Aucoc comb at the Tadema Gallery, listed in the 2500 to 5000 UKP range. Do we have a match?




This lovely French horn art nouveau comb went for $102.50. It was a modest, unsigned comb, but beautiful in its subtlety and shadow. I thought it was a fabulous buy.




This French horn comb with rhinestone beads and bats, c. 1910, went for $679.35 at an Ebay Live Auction on April 23.




This George Jensen comb, c. 1909-1914, went unsold at $4000. It was tortoise shell with sterling silver flowers and 5 red garnet stones.




Finally, here are three lovely kanzashi. The first has a beautiful arrangement of plum, bamboo, pine, tortoise and crane, Japanese symbols of luck. It sold for $283. The second has pine, plum, and sea bream. The tub implies purfication. c. late Edo to early Meiji. Price: $341.67. The third had coral blossoms on an ivory branch, and sold for $202.50.








Happy Collecting, Peeps!

Two Lovely Things On Ebay

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Two beautiful combs just sold on ebay. I won one, jcollect won the other.

This first one was an ivory comb with three delicately carved panels, which frame roses. Each side is edged with a leaf decoration. c. 1890. English. Measurements: 4 1/4″ wide by 4 7/8″ tall. There is virtually no discoloration to the ivory. Condition: Perfect. I think this comb was made by a master. It sold for $192, which I think is incredibly low, but great for the buyer! For me, this was a $600 comb. Debate welcome.




The second was a Victorian comb in the Algerian style, which influenced jewelry making as news of archeological finds captured the public’s imagination. I won this. Price: $300. Not a bargain, but  fair. I like pearls. :-)




Here are two other examples of combs in the Victorian Algerian style, both from the Norma Hague collection:



Did Not Sell

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This diamond and pearl tiara on a two-pronged blonde tortoiseshell comb, c. 1890, is being sold at Sothebys in Hong Kong on April 10, 2007. Est. $32,000 to $38,000. :O That’s a shocking price, but let’s see! I have never seen anything as over-the-top before in this style. This is fabulous! I’ll report the final price.

Here is Sotheby’s description: “The centre decorated with a spray of stylised flowering motifs, set throughout with circular- and rose-cut diamonds, highlighted by three natural pearls, on a series of scrolls supporting graduated star motifs set with similarly-cut diamonds, mounted in silver topped gold, to a three-pronged comb of horn, connected by a metal hinge and frame.”

Beautifully written, as usual, but it said “three-pronged comb of horn.” I might be getting old, but I see a two-pronged comb of blonde shell. ;-)

At any rate, who cares! Oh boy. :-)

Two Lovely Victorian Hair Combs

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Hand-done plique a jour is extremely rare. I have only seen one other piece with this kind of work, and it was part of the Norma Hague collection. This Victorian gold-and-silver plique ball and chain on a tortoiseshell hairpin, c. 1840, is a masterpiece. A Maltese Falcon. I love it unashamedly, but I knew how much I’d have to pay if I was going to outbid myrnatoo, so I had to let her have it. heh.It sold for $450 on Feb. 18.






 



This gold cap has dragons on it, and the dragons have ruby eyes. C. 1880 and English, it sits on a blonde tortoiseshell comb. I bought it for $349 on Feb. 20.

Victorian Garnet Hairpins

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Hi Peeps :-) I have been so busy with work and writing a book, there hasn’t even been a moment to blog! I am so sorry about this. A lot has happened in the comb market since my last post. I guess I’ll start with the lovely stuff that has been sold on ebay, and then move to other venues. The first thing I’d like to talk about is Victorian garnet hairpins, c. 1880. The small garnet tiara cluster on a two-pronged hairpin is a common design, but they are all beautiful. Maybe it would help collectors if a fair price could be recommended. On January 21, an ebay member paid $750 for this bohemian garnet tiara hinged on a two-pronged hairpin of clarified horn:



Antiques and Uncommon Treasure on Ruby Lane is selling this garnet tiara hinged to a two-pronged tortoiseshell hairpin for $295. She also has a matching garnet ring and bracelet to complete a set, each sold seperately.



This ebay seller did not meet her reserve when buyers only bid $179 for this garnet tiara hinged to a 2-pronged tortoiseshell comb on Feb 7.



And an ebay seller tried to sell this garnet tiara, tortoiseshell hairpin for — if I remember correctly — around $1000. Please correct my memory if you saved this auction. I only saved the photo. Why $1000? The box is Faberge. Is there documented provenance placing that hairpin in that box? No. I guess if I feel an item is worth $300, and I’m going to pay $700 for a box, I’d want peer-reviewed documentation placing that object in that box by that jeweler. No one bought this piece.



I’m going to go out on a limb. ;-) I think the $300 range is a fair price for garnet hairpins of this style and size, in excellent condition. If you pay over that, it could be auction frenzy, provenance that it came from a famous jeweler, or the name of the jeweler with the year marked on the back. Makers marks most certainly add value. How much is up to you.

Some Lovely Things on Ebay

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There have been a few beautiful things sold on ebay recently.

A Chinese hand-carved ivory comb of immaculate intricacy sold for $230.41 on Nov. 22. You may refer to item #290051280139.




A Late Edo tortoiseshell comb with gold maki-e paint and coral cabachons sold for $150 on Dec 10. This was a good buy.




A Victorian heavy gold plate, filligreed tiara with real red coral beads, c.1850, sold for $394 on Dec 11. It is very rare for all the tiny coral beads inbetween the gold plate to be in place and undamaged. Victorian jewelers also made combs in this style with seed pearls. Provenance: It was bought by Charles Stirling, 1789 – 1867. His grandchildren sold it through seller auctionit-ca, who lists the family’s entire history.




An opal tiara of the same quality was also sold by Stirling’s grandchildren through auctionit-ca for $335. It has filligree roses and 17 opalite stones. I think I know the person who bought it. Oh! It was ME! ;-P Want to hear a tragedy? The seller offered this comb for a Buy-It-Now of $200 in the beginning of the week, and I bid on it instead. I am currently on the train to ebay hell, where I will be in a room full of ebayers yelling at me for eternity for this, but it’s still beautiful, and I’m thrilled to have won!




This beautiful Chinese ivory hair pin sold for $305.01 on Dec 10. I think that’s high for this. If you look at the comb titled “Ivory Birds in a Flower Garden” in my bird comb post, you’ll see an entire comb in the same design.