Vintage Jewelry Word of the Week - What is Basse-taille?

Today's vintage jewelry word is Basse-taille. This is a French word which means "shallow cut." The term refers to an enameling technique which has chased relief metal which is overlaid with a translucent enamel finish.

During the process, the metal is engraved deeply enough so that the enamel can be held when heated. It also has sides high enough to be sure that the colors of the enamel are kept separate. The addition of the translucent enamel allows light to reflect from the relief and creates a very artistic effect. The end result has a lovely play of light and shade and a brilliance of tone.

The process of basse-taille was first developed in Italy in the 13th century, and was especially popular in Europe during the Gothic and Renaissance periods. This technique was also very popular with mid 20th century Scandinavian silversmiths such as David Andersen, Hroar Prydz and Askel Holmsen. The technique has also been called "translucent enameling."

Here are some xxamples of basse-taille jewelry:

Jewelry Find of the Week - David Andersen White Sterling and Enamel Leaf Set

I've been fortunate to aquire an estate collection of fabulous sterling silver Scandinavian jewelry recently. This week's jewelry find is a stunning demi parure by Norwegian silversmith David Andersen. The design features a gorgeous leaf design in sterling silver and white basse-taille enamel. Nice gold vermeil wash over the sterling.

The brooch has the harder to find four petal design and the earrings feature two petals.

Made in the mid 20th century, this design is part of a range of Scandinavian sterling silver jewelry which is much sought after and very highly collectible. It is featured in many of the resource books about jewelry from this period.

The brooch is 2 1/2 x 1 1/8" and the earrings measure 1 x 1 3/8". Fully marked on the back with the sign of the scales and the words D.A. 925s sterling Norway. There is also a W in a circle which refers to Willy Winnaess who worked for the company in the 1950s.

This lovely David Andersen sterling silver leaf set is available from my Vintage Jewelry Lane store for $149.99. I also have listed several other David Andersen sterling pieces this week from the same estate purchase.