Material:  Faceted Crystal, Brass/Bronze

Size:  Height ~ 3 inches, Width ~ apx 1 inch,    Faceted Crystal Ball ~ apx. 25mm

Quantity:  1

This interesting old wax seal features what we believe to be a clear crystal center with beveled edges, as well as a faceted crystal ball top that catches the light, dispersing brilliant multicolored prisms.

The metal appears to be bronze or brass, really quite heavy and substantial.  Craftsmanship is excellent, with very fine gallery detail accenting the top and bottom of the large center crystal.
Attractive polychrome champleve enamel decorates the metal work, plus rich cobalt blue Greek Key enameling on the seal.
Although we cannot be absolutely certain of origin, we have seen very similar period champleve enamel work from France and of course most fine crystals come from Austria, leading us to believe the seal is likely Continental, probably French.
The Greek Key design was a popular, frequently used motif from the Napoleon III, through the Belle Epoque and Edwardian eras, indicating that the seal likely dates to the late 19th or earlier 20th century.

This fine desk or writing accessory is in very nice antique / vintage estate condition.  Both the faceted crystal top, as well as the beveled center glass are excellent, with no noted chips, cracks, breaks or other issues.  All of the multicolor, polychrome champleve enamel work at base appears to be completely intact. With a jewelers loupe I can see one very tiny line across the center of a single white enamel section.  This is very minute, likely just age related, and all enamel remains securely in place.  There does appear to be some light expected wear to the red enamel detail located on the narrow flat surface directly above and below the fine gallery detail.  We also noted a very tiny separation in the upper gallery work, however this does not compromise structural integrity at all and is in fact virtually impossible to detect without a jewelers loupe. (unless you have absolutely amazing eyesight!)
The seal was never personalized with an incised or engraved monogram / emblem.
While writing this description I realized that the seal was quite dusty.  Unfortunately I did not notice the dust and fingerprints when taking the three pictures shown on the right.  After gently cleaning with a soft damp cloth the enamel work looked so rich and vibrant that I thought I’d better take new images, which I did, see below. However, due to being taken at night rather than in the daylight, like the three pics at right, I had to use a flash, which caused the background to appear too bright and the metal too yellow.  I went ahead and included them anyway, just so you can see how the crystal and enamel looks when clean, but the first three images are a better representation of actual color. (minus dust!)
This fine early wax seal, sceau or cachet would make an interesting addition to a collection, as well as a very nice gift.
Note:  Feng Shui followers believe that faceted crystals are good luck charms of sort, dissolving negative energy while amplifying good chi.

Fine Antique / Early Vintage Wax Seal Sceau ~ Faceted Crystal & Polychrome Champleve Enamel

$ 249.00