Antique German Jugendstil Arts & Crafts Silver & Amethyst Brooch - c.1910

This is a pretty little bar brooch which has been made very much in the German Jugendstil manner around the turn of the 20th century. The item is almost cigar shaped in form, with a finely hammered finish to front side. To the centre is a collet set oval faceted amethyst stone, and this is flanked by 3 raised silver studs either side. The faux studs or rivets are very much a hallmark of German Arts & Crafts pieces (known as Jugendstil), and this particular style of decoration is often seen on jewellery by Theodore Fahrner and the famous Anglo-German jewellery partnership, Murrle Bennett & Co. To the reverse of the brooch is a standard round hinge and C clasp mechanism, which is perfectly correct for the era. What's interesting about the markings to the brooch is the stamped term 'Sterling Silber', with the word Silber being German for silver - naturally this confirms its country of origin, and probably means it was manufactured for the German market rather than for export. It's also slightly more unusual to see a German piece made in Sterling grade silver as most you see are marked as .800 silver or thereabouts. The brooch measures 7.4cm in length and has a width of 0.6cm. It's offered in good condition with a nice patina to the silver. There is only perfectly normal signs of light use and wear commensurate with its age.