Mid 20th Century Crystal Oyster Shell Caviar Dish With Full Mother-of-Pearl & Engraved Silver Spoon

Details

Description

…The finest caviar demands the finest vessel — and this set answers that call with an almost architectural perfection. Where … Read more …The finest caviar demands the finest vessel — and this set answers that call with an almost architectural perfection. Where most caviar spoons compromise in material, this one does not: both the wide paddle handle and the generous oval bowl are fashioned from luminous mother-of-pearl, the two halves united by a delicately engraved silver collar worked with foliate scrollwork of considerable fineness.

The result is a spoon that is entirely, unapologetically pearl — cool and iridescent in the hand, its shifting silk of cream, blush, and silver-green making it as much an object of contemplation as of use. Paired with the pressed crystal oyster-shell dish — translucent, rippling, organic — the set achieves a harmony of natural materials that is rare and deeply pleasing. 5" aprox.

At approximately 8 × 6 inches, the dish is perfectly proportioned for the serious presentation of beluga, osetra, or paddlefish roe — or equally, for a jewel tray, a trinket dish, a scent bottle rest. It is that kind of object: one that finds its purpose wherever it lands.

Provenance: Acquired at a private estate sale in East Hampton, New York, from the collection of a distinguished diplomatic family who spent more than forty years posted across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, acquiring with discernment and living with great style.

Condition is excellent throughout. The mother-of-pearl retains full iridescent lustre; the silver collar shows gentle age-appropriate patina; the crystal is bright and clean. See less