Art Nouveau Cambridge 1895-1920s Sterling silver overlay Teal glass Jardinieres

decorated in sterling silver [marked as such both on a label on one
of them, and 'sterling' in the silver of each of them.] by National Silver
Deposit Ware Co.of NY. These were done during the first period of silver
overlay, between 1895 and 1925

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. In 1893, a patent was
registered in the US 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. There were two distinct eras of Silver
Overlay. From 1895 to the early 1920's, this art had its own avid following and
became a decorative rage. But during this first era, it was very labor intensive
and expensive and this period was over by the mid-1930's.