 Linda is a second-hand shop junkie, and she "spotted these stunning set of
plates that had just arrived in and was fortunate enough that nobody else had
the opportunity to purchase them before me. I think I got them for a steal.
Let's hope my rummaging finally pays off." She paid $50 for a cobalt blue with
sterling overlay seven-piece dessert plate set with a G. Cecchi label.
Appraiser DoRi Miles: I'm unable to find anything on G. Cecchi. However, she
has a blown-in-mold dessert set or cake set in cobalt blue glass with sterling
silver overlay as the "Argento 925%" on the label indicates. Argento means
silver in Italian. The large plate is 12 inches, and the small plates are 6
inches in diameter. Unlike other silvered pieces, this is not a silver foil or
silver metal treatment, but appears to be a surface treatment of sterling-silver
paint.
The design and treatment is typical of glass from the island of
Murano, Italy, a huge glassmaking center that moved from the city of Venice
because of the great fire losses from the superheated glass ovens and wooden
structures in such a heavily-populated area
The label is important for
posterity and adds a bit to the value. If you have to remove it, that's probably
best done by a warm-water soak, it should be saved with this appraisal and/or
you should have a sharp-focus picture of it. If you're selling it, of course, it
should remain intact, and the information provided here passed on to the next
owner.
Because this type of imported ware has been made for decades, without
a catalog or other solid information such as a bill of sale, dating is
difficult. However, I noticed a lot of this type of glass in the 1960s and 1970s
when I first had my antiques shop, and people would bring items in for me to buy
or appraise. Of course, it's still being made, so recent manufacture is also a
possibility, especially with such perfect condition, and the label that
indicates the set wasn't used.
The retail value and insurance-replacement
value on the large plate is $25, and the small plates are $10 each = $85. The
wholesale value of $35 is what you might expect from a shop buying for resale or
a starting price at auction.
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