A FINE AND LARGE VIENNESE MOTHER-OF-PEARL-MOUNTED SILVER AND ENAMEL 'JEWELED' NEF

MARK OF HERMANN BÖHM, VIENNA, CIRCA 1890

Details

A FINE AND LARGE VIENNESE MOTHER-OF-PEARL-MOUNTED SILVER AND ENAMEL 'JEWELED' NEF
MARK OF HERMANN BÖHM, VIENNA, CIRCA 1890
Each spiral-turned mast headed by a flag finial above a crow's nest mounted with sailors, the sails decorated on both sides with scrolling vines and mythological reserves, the masts joined by arched bridges, set on an ovoid deck headed by a griffin, the trellis-cast stern applied with a winged mermaid, the interior and exterior of the recessed hull further decorated with foliage, masks and allegorical vignettes, on four dolphin supports and spreading square base centred on each side by a glass-enclosed putto and hippocampus, variously stamped HB, with Austrian control marks
38¼ in. (97 cm.) high; 25 5/8 in. (65 cm.) wide

Lot Essay

In 1866, Hermann Böhm founded his prolific Viennese firm, which continued to produce objects through the beginning of the 20th century. Considered to be the height of his artistic maturity, the last decades of the 19th century earned Böhm international acclaim in response to his silver, enamel and rock crystal objects in the Mannerist and Renaissance styles. The firm contributed to various International Exhibitions, including Vienna in 1873 and Paris in 1889. A similar, though smaller, nef was sold at Sotheby's New York, 14 April 2008, lot 8 ($127,000).

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