So this posting is rather nothing to do with antiques...which by the way is so green in that the enviroment is being saved...nothing new being manufactured.On the other side of being green is the very strict letter of the law where those employed to enforce it have little or no brain to take a decision on whether to apply it or not.I happened to park in a steet with 14 parking bays which have a two hour limit.Having paid for the two hours i returned so that i would be able to move my car so that i could pay for a further two hours.Well there were only three cars in the street and seeing that there were plenty of spaces i leftmy car in that space and placed a further 1 france for another two hours.....but guess who was waiting around the corner...no doubt...one of those fanatical meter maids...she fined me 80francs for not moving my car 2/3 meters...as there were 11 bays empty.Now i would have thought there would be some discretion used here...but alas no ways...so be warned even if there is an open field...one must move that vechile...start it up and creep into a fresh bay.(not that green).and then place your 1 franc in the meter ......and all this makes them real happy.
Well i guess as it is said of Zurich control control control!!!!!!!!
The next green issue in zurich is the state of public toilets...especially for men...there are hardly any...and thats if u can find them...and here i mean toilets that u can sit down if u are desperate....most of them are so filthy that one carries your own personal detergent just in case.The new ones ...those metal cabinets just swollow your money and donot open...so dash to McDonalds or the nearest restaurant pay your 5 francs for coffee or whatever and there is no stress.Ofcourse should u need to pee then do as most do ....up aginst a wall or the nearest bush...not that i advocate this as no doubt there are ticket maids/personel that are lurking close by to dish out a heavy fine.Oh to fill the city coffers...tra...la...la.Its all a big rip off and yet its the law.
This week several friends....over 40 yrs...phoned and said they were depressed and i was rather surprised it all happend within the same week....the sad faces on the tram or bus tells a story...and a female friend called in desperation that she felt like hanging herself.....now that shocked me as she has so much to live for...yet she found the control control control just too much.
Some time ago i was sitting on the loo in a public toilet ....doing my business...and all of a sudden the toilet door opened...i had locked it...to see three policeman standing outside...i shouted what the ......ing hell was going on....and he replied that he was looking for drugies!!so he had a key of some sorts and blithly opened the door doing his controling.Where can one be safe today without those prying eyes....sadly i believe...no where!
Back to the toilet facilties.....we experienced unpleasant words when waiting in one of those long lines to have a pee at the steet parade...ok thousands of people but so few toilets and then they expect people to be calm and behave.
Perhaps some will say i am one of those grumpy old men...perhaps...but at this age who wants to have all the hassels...one pays enough ...for the facilities provided.Zurich facilities should be above par for the international visitors whether they are staying one star or five star.
now that i have my gripes i hope that the coming week will be a happier one without snags and petty law.have a good one.

It has been sometime that i have been able to add an entry but then when one is having a good time there is so much to do and people to take care of...well thats my excuse and i am sticking to it.Once again i have done many kilometers in search for collectibles and treasures and delighted to say that i have found several....which will go into my back cupboard for the meantime.I guess when one is looking then one finds and thats part of the game but then again it is time consumming...and time is not available to all and hence dealers like myself have an opportunity to offer to you these collectibles/treasures.
Showning in the first picture is a absolutely wonderful antique Dutch wine glass which has been engraved with a ship on the waves and a setting with a castle surrounded with palm tress.
The inscription reads......in Dutch...HET WEL VAAREN VAN DEESSEN LAND.
In the bowl one can see how the glass has been drawn and has inclusions where they have cleverly etched over these small inclusions.The base of bowl contains multiple bubbles with a three knob stem which is hollow and then down to the raised folded foot.Running your finger over the still rough pontil mark being true of the period.Where u have a flat footed glass the pontil would have been polished smooth so that the rough glass would not spoil the furniture and also indicative of the changing times.Sized at 22.5cm and in perfect condition considering that this one dates from 1760/80.


The next picture is that of two English firing glasses....so called as they were used mainly by the Masons when sitting at a long table where the drink was thrown back and the glass was then slammed down on the table giving a firing sound....imagine 10/15 of these pouding the table(more or less)similtaneously...as if a volly has been spent.There are several variations of the stories attached to this one and a quick google will give you the list.These have swags and bows engraved with a flat foot where the pontil has been polished smooth.They are in perfect condition and very collectible.

Here is a link to a short story of the start of glass....one of many available...
start of glass manufacturing and its history
and then here is a link to a site which specialises in antique drinking glasses and gives one an insight to these collectibles and some being costly.
webpage of drinking glasses
and then a page that gives tips on how to deternine if it is antique or not....
Tips on antique glass
And then there is a link for those wanting a good book ...as a beginner there is a large choice so browse through and start somewhere as the next trip to your local charity shop many pay handsome dividends or if you are a serious collector....a very broad smile on your face.
booksThese items are available....and there are more so if you wish to see more do visit the shop and lots of fun in finding.

With the Xmas season way past and the new year upon us we hope that all readers had a great time and that 2009 will be kind to all.
Once again we had a busy season with good items selling well and now the endless search for new treasures with the snow lying deep on the ground and the freezing temperatures suggesting staying indoors for the rest of the week.Yeah never liked it when its -15 degrees and all the icy roads and layers of warm clothing yet i still tend to have very cold feet.
I wish to share with u some information on the two bronzes featured here which i really like in that they are stunningly sculptured and as a pair really desirable.
The sculptor is Mathurin Moreau born in 1822 died 1912 of french origin he exhihibited in the 1848 salon and was awarded a medal of honor from the salon in 1897.
These have a wonderful patination and have not been touched up or restored...rather in orginal condition with the usual dirt of time.Along with these are the copies of Vol 3 1800-1930 guide to bronzes sculptors and founders picturing the pair as the Hunter and Huntress measuring over 50cm high.


and further reading which covers this man can be found here....Moreau
Another good source will be artnet where several bronzes have been sold over the years.
There are a couple of figures by Moreau on the net so there is a good source for further study.Do visit the shop......Bronzes where u can find several bronzes for sale.
A new year and so much to do and share with u this year so i am looking forward to further posts.

Well it has been a good year in finding and selling items that are not that easy to come by but its still all out there just to be found.Featured in the pics are the highlights of the year and all but one have been sold with a blink of an eye.The first being a pair of early Dutch silver cast candlesticks with clear marks and dating to 1740 these were chased by several dealers and certainly helped in getting a good but fair price.
The next item is an amazing WMF batman tea set with tray all in very good condition and certainly makes a bold statement.This set was left to a niece who disliked it so much but knew that it had good value and i could just not say no to buying it as i have never seen a complete set in such wonderful condition.Gave it a good polish and presented it strangely it was noticed by a friend of an avid collector and a phone call from him and it was reserved.He flew in the following day and purchased the set.One of these times when u feel rather delighted that it has gone to a collector.
The other interesting piece being a small Wedgwood Fairyland Lustre bowl decorated with elves and fairies in great condition.
Where was it found...well at one of those street markets where i happened to pass by when it was being unwrapped....shocked to see it there...but snapped it up immediately.There are good books covering this subject and there are other rare items to be found.Recently on the antiques show a man showed a vase which was totally unrecorded and the valuator was pleasantly surpised as he had never seen anything like it.A sugested re sale value 10-20 thousand pounds. Not bad in a days work!!
I have been putting a collection together of Czech glass in both the pressed and freeform and will be adding it to my website early next year.I was hoping to have it ready year end but have discovered that there is so much more to it all if a good study is to be shown.
most of the pressed glass had being ignored for a long time but has recently got a boost due to a new book covering the subject.I will link the book along with the list on the website and i must add that there are some stunning designer pieces....some of which no examples are shown in pic form.
So why not visit the shop and see whats new........shop
and wishing all a good holiday nad all the very best for 2009.

So off we were setting up our display for the antiques fair in Oerlikon Zurich and were rather delighted that firstly the weather was good, no rain and snow like last year, and there was a minimal waiting time to enter with our load of goodies.
on entering the huge hall we noticed that there were a lot less dealers than in previous years and this made me wonder who was there displaying their goodies so i straight away wafted through to take a peek and i was rather pleasantly surprised to see some stunning stands with some of the most beautiful and decorative objects.some have got to great lenghts in decorating
their stands.A lot more quality stands loaded with goodies and i rather thought a good deal were rather resonably priced.
within the first two hours good business was done between the dealers and large bags loaded their hands and shoulders and i must add that there were big smile from both buyer and seller.
dealers from France Germany Italy fanned the stands to snap buy those treasures and they did well.
on entering the hall with a fababulous german bronze of a naked lady,cast in Berlin, i was accosted by no less than three dealers,for the price and wanting me to stop and show them this treasure.so i learnt from last year and told them they would have to wait awhile longer.
i was fortunate to sell several items i had in stock with promises of a return visit so tonight i have to dig deeper in my back cupboard to present new items for tomorrow and the next three days.It was a delight selling this year without too many price pushy dealers drilling our prices into the ground.so they had to make a quick and good buy so that the next in queue
stood little chance.
A large amount of glass from the smaller factories to the big names...its all there.
silver and silverplate can be found at each stand also a good selection of amazing furniture, i passed be a magnificent Bouelle writing table in prestine condition and a real stunner.
clocks ticking all over the hall and watches watches watches!!!the chice is yours,we are in switzerland after all.
toys feature strongly from the tiniest play thing to the rarer french automated toys and then there is railwayana and other boys toys.There are three dealers who show amazing gifts for men dating from 1400 to present day with some that i would normally pass by but as i was offered a cup of coffee i took some time in asking and talking.Here comes the hook ....i have something new to collect and i thought those days were gone...ha! he got me hooked.
pictures fill the walls and the isles all one needs is the time to browse through and then not to forget to mention the poastcard section...wow! what a lot of paper and these were well attended.
then off to the 20 or so stands that sell Xmas decorations...and here the choice is wide and varied and many hands were digging in the boxes and soon the tables had to be re packed.
i saw a xmas bauble going for 220.sfr ...yea it was old and made from glass...so if a whole tree is decorated in the same...hmmmmmm...one wonders what an antique angel would go for.
the nice thing about this antique fair is that not all is that expensive and yet afforable so that one can spoil oneself on something small and special.
If you have the time pop in to the fair and see a whole lot new dealers with fresh ....fresh...stock what a treat.
hope to see you there and please say hello.

WHERE HAS ALL MY TIME GONE TO WITH STILL SO MUCH TO DO.NEEDED TO COMPLETE MY BLOG STORIES BUT THEN ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE AT HOME WITH 30CM SNOW AND THE LATE ARRIVAL OF WOOD TO FIRE THE OVEN.
THE SNOW IS GREAT AND HAS THE WHOLE MOUNTAINOUS AREA TURNED INTO A FAIRY WONDERLAND.ACROSS THE VALLEY,AS I STAND ON THE TERRACE,THE TRESS ARE GROANING WITH THE WEIGHT OF THE PURE WHITE SNOW AS THE HOUSES STAND PROUD OF THAT SNOWY STUFF WITH THIN WISPS OF SMOKE RISING FROM THEIR CHIMNEYS.DARKNESS BRINGS ON ANOTHER LOOK WITH THE SOFT YELLOW LIGHTS FILLING THE SMALL BUT MANY WINDOWS THROUGHOUT THE VILLAGES WHICH SPREAD ACROSS THE VALLEY AND THE OCCASIONAL PIERCING BRIGHT WHITE LIGHT OF A MOTOR VECHILE MOVING SLOWLY TWISTING AND TURNING ALONG THE CURVES.THE CLEAR SKIES SHOW OFF THE WONDERMENT OF A HUGE SKY FILLED WITH TWINKLING STARS AND DEATHLY SILENCE FILLS THE NIGHT.THIS IS SO XMAS THAT U FEEL ANY MOMENT THAT SANTA CLAUS WILL FLY BY PULLED BY A DECORATED SLEIGH AND ITS REINDEER.
IN THESE TIMES IT IS GREAT TO LET THE IMAGINATIION RUN AS WE WELL KNOW THAT THERE WILL BE LITTLE IN THE STOCKINGS BUT THEN AGAIN XMAS IS XMAS WHICH WE HAVE ALL MADE A HUGE COMMERCIAL EVENT OF THE CALENDAR YEAR.ALONG WITH THIS IS THE ANTIQUE FAIR WHICH TAKES PLACE IN OERLIKON MESSE FROM THE 11 DECEMBER TILL THE 15 AND HERE ONE WILL SURELY FIND GREAT BARGAINS TO FILL THOSE STOCKINGS.THE WORLD TALKS GREEN....DOES LITTLE....AND HERE WE ALL HAVE THE GOLDEN(GREEN) OPPORTUNITY OF DOING SOMETHING TO FURTHER THESE OBJECTIVES....BUY AN ANTIQUE....GREENER THAN THIS GIFT WISE U CAN NEVER BE... ADDING TO THAT U HAVE A CHOICE OF 300 ODD DEALERS ALL CLAMOURING FOR YOUR SWISS FRANCS.
WE WILL BE THERE SO PLEASE DO VISIT AND TALK A DEAL...THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME TO BUY A SUPER GIFT AT A GOOD PRICE IF NOT A TOTAL BARGAIN AND REMEMBER THAT U ARE BEING CORRECT IN BUYING GREEN!WE HAVE GREAT BUYS AT OUR SHOP IN ZURICH....BIRMENSDORFERSTRASSE 201 KREIS 3...VIS A VIS CO OP.......SELLING 50-70 FURNITURE COLLECTIBLES AND MUCH MUCH MORE.FINE SILVER PICTURES.. FINE ENGLISH FURNITURE...AND SCARCE PORCELAIN.
HOPE TO SEE U SOON.
THE GLASS BLOG WILLL FOLLOW IN TWO WEEKS.