Personalized Art Nouveau 1910 Silver Overlay Glass Decanter with Stopper. Swirls and curls of wheat-like silver grace the sides of the glass, with a solid neck, mouth, handle, and top of the stopper. A large round piece on the side opposite the handle displays a W and two Cs at top, with the words "Invitation Handicap 1910 Best Net" below. At the bottom is the name "W. B. Raymond," meaning this was likely an award gifted to that individual for a sporting game. 

Condition: Commensurate with age. 

Size: 4 1/2 x 12 3/4 in. 

In 1889 the decorative technique of applying silver designs to glass was patented by Oscar Pierre Erand and John Benjamin Round for Stevens & Williams Ltd in Birmingham, England. It had the shortcoming that the reverse side of the silver next to the glass would tarnish and turn dark. Nevertheless, silver overlay swiftly became a highly desirable design on decorative and functional objects throughout the Western world. In 1893 a patent was registered in the United States by John H. Sharling of New Jersey, which had the distinct advantage that the reverse side was white and stayed that way by utilizing electroplating. When threatened with a lawsuit by Stevens & Williams, he instead shared his methods with multiple other makers throughout the United States, which led to the heyday of silver overlay. From 1895 to the early 1920s it became an artform in its own right and had an avid following, but it was a very labor intensive and expensive process, which led to a downturn due to supply shortages and changing tastes during World War I. By the mid 30s the style had gone out of vogue, but a revival followed immediately after World War II as silversmiths and manufacturers pivoted away from wartime production into decorative and functional glasswares once again, and lasted until the late 1950s as synthetic materials and plastics began to supplant older housewares and goods.

Commensurate with age.