Posted 7 years ago
capot1948
(20 items)
My wife found this today at one of our favorite antique stores in Burnet, Tx. She paid $19.50 for it. From what I've read since getting home about Incolay items it appears to be genuine. The hinge is glued on, not screwed in. The bottom is covered in velvet. It has the correct sticker on the lid and if you can see it on the last photo the '(C)Incolay' logo on the outside below the hinge. I apologize for the photos being dark however I used a desk lamp to shine down on it and turned the flash off on my camera.
When I read that the hinge is glued on, not screwed in, I thought, Oh, then it's not genuine Incolay, because I have read that one indicator of the real McCoy is the screw-attached hinge & the Incolay jewelry box I have does have the hinge attached that way.
But the sticker & the impressed copyright mark clearly indicate your box is also genuine Incolay Stone, so have to conclude that hinge attachment method no sure indicator of authenticity.
The original Incolay Studios only lasted for about a decade because the man who invented the polymer material passed away & his wife sold the firm. I believe it has been sold at least one more time after that. Would guess that this box was made by one of the successor firms, perhaps in sort of a middle period, since it still uses a classical motif (The Three Graces) of the type favored by the creators but a less expensive manufacturing technique in the glued-on hinge, which may also reflect advances in the field of adhesives. As you know, the slab of an Incolay box lid would require some serious glue! Later Incolay pieces seem to feature hunting motifs, such as deer, and more romantic, less classical scenes than the earlier work.
I have written a bit more on the history of Incolay here:
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/229114-good-ol-buckle?in=696
Thanks for the link and the information, however, as per here - http://www.ebay.com.au/gds/Real-Incolay-versus-Fake-Incolay-/10000000071210815/g.html The important part is
"All real Incolay boxes have hinged lids...if the lid just sits on the base and has no velvet , then 99% of the time its fake.( Incolay did 3 boxes without hinges ) If it does have a hinge and its thin flimsy metal thats been screwed on and looks gold plated, it's a fake. Incolay studios uses heavy brass hinges and they are glued on.(once in awhile, on very huge boxes, they used screws) "
That's a great story in the link you sent. You're right I don't think any of the Good 'ol Boys here in Texas would wear that buckle.
The box I have I think would qualify as huge - 9.5 x 7 x 4 inches - is velvet lined with a lift out tray & an elaborate scene of a bacchanale. Heavy duty in every way. It also still has its original Incolay Studios sticker. As I have written elsewhere, I think Incolay is entirely underappreciated. :)
I think that would qualify a huge for sure. I agree, it's the first time we'd seen anything like it and my wife really loved it at first sight. I don't know if she paid too much for it or not but it's definitely worth keeping.
Your wife got a good deal. Now you need a pair of the Dante Museum Masterpiece cufflinks to keep in it. :)
Thanks, she's claimed it for some of her vintage costume jewelry such as the cameos she has in it in the photo.
Just happened on this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/201949109235
Like Incolay, Wedgwood designs are a mix of copies from work in other media & original productions. In this case, an Incolay copy of a Wedgwood original.
That's just beautiful. It's definitely a copy of the Wedgwood cameo.
So beautiful!! I have a ships and lighthouse box. It looks like someone etched their initials next to the copyright Inoclay. The copyright also has a date of 1979. There is the original oval sticker on it. Theres also 2 additional sticks. One under the lid reading "Tortuga Bay" under the lid by the oval sticker and a number 1 on the bottom. Don't know what any of the means yet but hoping to find out!
I can vouch for the lids being glued on. I was one of Incolay's artists back in the late 70's, early 80's. The sample box of my work that I still have (no idea where the others went), the lid is glued on. The one I have still is an exotic face surrounded by vines and leaves.
Glued onto the hinges that is....
So cool to hear from someone who was involved with Incolay in its earlier period. Thanks for weighing in.
I have bought another Incolay box since this thread started. Smaller than the one described above, with glued hinge & original sticker. The motif on the lid is taken from one known from some engraved gems, so guessing an earlier piece.
Byzantia (or anyone else) -- do you have any recommendations for glue to use to reattach the lid hinge? My uncle gave a Incolay Stone jewelry box in the late 70s that I still have. The glue that held the hinge on has come off and I'd like to fix that.
I'm not looking to make money -- it's really just sentimental.