Weekly Favorites: Art Nouveau Objects of Affection

The sweetest collections are often petite, and tug at the heart, like these Antique Art Nouveau Jewlery Caskets do. Lovingly and quite avidly collected, each is a tiny masterpiece.

These boxes are from the Art Nouveau period, which spanned just 20 years, between 1890 to 1910. How sweet are these?

Although they may look like brass, they are actually usually made of molded pot metal, then gilt covered either with a gold wash, or gold plating.

Inside, they were often lined in softest silk, although these days to find one with the original silk lining is rare as they shred over the last 100 years {and expect to pay a premium for those!}

Here in the United States, many of these boxes were made right after the Civil War by companies in New England. They were quite a well appreciated gift for a lady love. The boxes range in size from 1`1/2" x 2" to about 5~1/2" x 6" at most. Collectors expect to pay up to $365.00 for a wonderfully pristine box, which makes these petite treasures an affordable vice!