Wartski – The First 150 Years

Geoffrey Munn

Antique Collectors’ Club (ACC), £65/ US $125

This is the story of the internationally known firm from its start in North Wales to its present day incarnation in London’s Mayfair.  It is a remarkable tale adorned with marvellous precious objects, including, of course, works by Fabergé.  Their clientele is wide ranging from crowned heads, writers, stars of stage and screen to notable collectors such as Malcolm Forbes and Marjorie Merriweather Post.

‘Apparitions’, a gold and enamel brooch by Vever, c 1900

It is a vibrant firm which continues to not only sell the past but also encourages contemporary jewellery designers and goldsmiths.  This is a well-illustrated book with images of both the wonderful pieces that have passed through their hands and their glittering array of clients and thus it also becomes a social history.

A Fabergé Aquamarine and diamond brooch bought by Nicholas II for his wife Alix of Hesse three months before their wedding.

The author is Wartski’s Managing Director, Geoffrey Munn, who will be a familiar face to many of you from his appearances on the BBC Antiques Road Show. He is to be congratulated on this history of the firm and I really don’t think there could be a more fitting way to celebrate Wartski’s first 150 years.

A gold pendant in the form of a Bacchante. Attributed to Castellani or Giancinto Mellilo, c 1870

An Emerald and diamond set Tiara by Evrard & Frédéric Bapst , Originally part of the French Crown Jewels

An oval banded onyx cameo of Cupid and Psyche by Tomasso Saulini (1793-1864)

Third Imperial Egg by Carl Fabergé. Recently rediscovered and exhibited at Wartski in 2014

http://www.antique-collecting.co.uk/antique-collectors-club-books/

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