Very Old Signed (with an unusual mark) Filigree Round Brooch--Strikingly Beautiful in it's Simplicity!

Tiny Filigree Flowers centered with striking blue rhinestone Cabs and chatons--Simply Beautiful!  Possibly created by New England Glassworks?

Every once in a while you'll encounter a piece of jewelry that isn't perfect, but it really doesn't matter that it's not perfect because if it were, it wouldn't be as special.  This one here is just such a brooch.  I think it's special to me because it shows it's age through the most simplistic themes of Art Nouveau design--Flowers.

This brooch/pin is a bit of an oddity due to it's signature.  Many costume Jewelry manufacturers signatures are readily known, with their histories a matter of public domain available for all to peruse.  The mark on this brooch however is somewhat of an enigma.  It is signed with the initials "NE" formed inside the imprint of a wine goblet in the very center of the back of the pin.  The best information that I can gather on that mark indicates that the pin was made by New England Glassworks, but even that is speculative.  Very little is published about jewelry from New England Glassworks, so research into the mark has turned up virtually nothing in regards to date, manufacturing methods, or even a designer.  All I can say about this brooch with any certainty is that I really, really like it!

If you've been paying attention to the jewels presented here at Discerning Blonde, you should have noticed that I very very seldom put up for sale a piece of jewelry that has a missing stone.  It bothers me a great deal when stones are missing, and nowadays I won't even consider purchasing a piece of jewelry even for my personal collection if there are missing stones in it.  This brooch is a real exception though.  It's just so simple and dainty that it doesn't have to be perfect!

This brooch is 2 1/2" round with a convex front made with a silver-tone metal over white metal.  The subject matter is small flowers, very daisy-like in style, scattered throughout the design, and each of these tiny flowers is centered with a cobalt blue chaton.  Strategically placed throughout the rest of the brooch are beautiful cobalt blue (or royal blue if you prefer) cabochons, bezel set and in two different sizes.  The design is just beautiful, guaranteed to get compliments from even the most discerning jewelry collector!

Condition:  This brooch is very old, and it is certainly worn.  The wear is very age appropriate, as I would estimate this brooch to be from the mid to late 1930's, if not even earlier than that.  There is a great deal of patinization to the silver-tone metal, and even a bit of wear down to the base metal in some instances on the back.  It has not been cleaned at all, and so there are area's of darkening on the metal as well.  Two of the blue stones are missing from the piece, and they are noticeable.  The price reflects the missing stones as well as the wear of the metal.  Overall I would assess the piece to be in good solid "Good" condition.

Listed on E-Bay

To bid on this Item Click Here

It's difficult to see the missing stones.  One is right above the center stone, and the second is all the way down at the bottom of the brooch, just to the lower right of the bottom stone.

Gives an idea of just how much wear there is to the piece.  It's silver tone white metal construction shows a bit of wear to the backside of the brooch.

This mark is not found often in costume jewelry, and it's provenance is still questionable.  This signature has been generally agreed upon by experts to be the work of the New England Glass Company, although there are no records of any sort that indicate that this company ever even made jewelry.  Many pieces of jewelry have been discovered with this NE inside a Goblet type of mark though.