Magnificent silver scrivener Ginabreda. Barcelona, XIX Century

This lovely sterling silver piece is a very decorative inkstand made with a high degree of detail. It comes from Barcelona, Spain, and was made in the late 19th century. The silver bears several hallmarks at the base: different marks and inscriptions that testify for its quality and origin. The inkstand is complete and has different compartments and parts designed to hold the pens and contain the ink, and a silver bell intended to call the service or secretary. It boasts a baroque and decorative style, with many embossed motives and details skillfully performed. If we turn this article upside down, at the base we will find the hallmarks. We can see a pineapple-shaped mark, the hallmark of the city of Barcelona during XIX century, another one with the initials B R, and a cup between them and a third one with the word GINABREDA. This name probably corresponds to Josep Ignasi Ginabreda, a Catalonian silversmith that in 1849 opened a shop in Argenteria street, Barcelona. His pieces are directly related to the modernist style so popular in those times. This inkstand is a good example, as it shows a freedom of forms and a great movement very much to the artistic movements taste. The inkstands base is quite ample and its edge is decorated with wavy vegetal embossed motives, full of life and detail. The inkstand and the dryer stand on it: their respective lids bear blossom-shaped handles. Between them we can see a charming sculpture group composed of two small figures depicting naked kids on a pedestal. One of the figures lifts an arm to support a recipient located in the middle of the inkstand, on a higher level. This recipient is shaped like a bell and its lid bear a handle in the shape of a vine branch with a grape bunch. This wonderful inkstands modernist style turns it into an exclusive piece, really beautiful and of undeniable quality. Measurements: Width: 8.2 in/21 cm. Height: 8.6 in/22 cm. Weight 500 grams