It was love at first sight that led me to collect and seek out old French enamel objects! I was literally captivated by the sophistication that characterizes these everyday, if we may say, “humble” products from France, as well as Belgium, Germany, Austria, and Czechoslovakia, from the second half of the 19th century up to the ’40s and ’50s.

The history of enamel objects is intertwined with industrial development. It was necessary to reach a certain level of technological skill in metalworking to produce this type of object.

The enameling of metal objects occurred by coating them with layers of glassy powders and metallic oxides, varying depending on the desired color, followed by high-temperature firing.

The enamel firing process for objects used in the kitchen, personal hygiene, and even in the medical field provided greater hygiene assurance and was highly appreciated by consumers of that era – an expanding middle class constantly seeking items to enhance comfort and lifestyle.

Just arrived

Fascinating vintage catalogs from various manufacturers still exist, illustrating the wide range of enamel objects and their decorations. There are also advertisements from various department stores where these enamel objects could be purchased.

It can happen while strolling through markets, and today, even exploring the web, to come across enamel objects, whose prices can range from a few euros to quite high amounts. After many years spent hunting for these items, first for myself and then for my clients, I found it interesting to try to offer a small guide to those approaching this fascinating world for the first time, which, in my opinion, is not so well-known, especially in Italy.

How to date a French enamel object? How to determine if the French enamel piece in front of us is intact? How to understand the value of the French enamel object that interests us? I will try to answer these and other questions by sharing the experience I have gained over the years of work. First, I will try to explain how to date a French enamel object.

 

How to Date a French Enamel Object

As I mentioned earlier, the first manufactures of enamel objects emerged in the second half of the 19th century, both in France and in Belgium and the German-Austrian region. The older pieces can be fairly easily distinguished by closely observing the construction details. To help you better understand, I will show you some examples of very old French enamel pieces:

 

French Original Enamels: Features and Peculiarities

1. Pay attention to the handles and spouts of coffee pots, pitchers, and tureens, especially in older pieces: these are strictly flat, as there was not yet advanced technology to create curved handles and spouts.

 

2. Another strategic point to observe is the attachment point of the reported handles, spouts, and pourers to the body of the enamel object. In older pieces, the attachment is done with rivets and is clearly visible, while in more recent pieces, the attachment point, which occurred after enameling, is imperceptible due to welding.

 

 

3. The lids also provide additional clues. In older pieces, we find the knobs of coffee pot lids, jars, teapots, etc., attached and screwed from the inside, often made of wood or porcelain. In less old pieces, the “emboutissage” process allows for the creation of lids stamped in a single body.

 

4. The older objects were constructed by joining two symmetrical parts later connected to each other. It is therefore possible to easily identify, on the vertical axis of the piece and, in coffee pots, on the pouring spout, the seam line of the two parts. In less old pieces, this line disappears thanks to the refinement of the “emboutissage” process, which allowed for the stamping of the entire piece using a press. This process required high-quality raw materials, and the press, to function, needed steam or electric power.

 

The older pieces generally have a somewhat more “primitive” appearance, but they are often moving due to the extreme care, refinement, and delicacy of their lines and decorations.

 

French Enamels – Original Decorations

Regarding decorations, it can be said that enamel objects followed the prevailing trends for those in ceramics and porcelain. Types of decorations include:

1. Decals: Decorations were often created using decals, sometimes in monochrome or with various colors and hand retouching. Patterns of small scattered flowers or placed flower motifs, small landscapes, and, quite interestingly, Japanese-style motifs. In fact, following the opening of trade with Japan, the massive importation of artifacts from that country became possible, and a great interest in Japanese art developed, influencing many artists and designers of the time.

 

 

2. Hand-Painted Decorations: Pieces of very old French enamel hand-painted are also stunning. Here, the skill of the decorators, who often came from porcelain manufactures, reached extremely high levels of sophistication.

The techniques included thick enamel, where the decoration is applied with a rather thick and pasty enamel layer, resulting in a slightly raised texture, or “hand-light” enamel, where the decoration was applied in a very thin layer, resembling the effect of a watercolor.

The subjects were usually flowers, little birds, butterflies, small landscapes… Often, there are gold filigree details. These pieces were undoubtedly originally of high value.

 

 

3. Filigree and Bands: Simpler pieces typically feature decoration with simple or double filigree, sometimes even with gilding.

 

 

 

 

 

4. Designs with Molds: In a single color or bicolored or multicolored, designs made with molds could achieve remarkable artistic effects. The design was composed through the successive application of three, four, or five molds, each for a different color. Around 1920, the airbrush began to be used to spray colors, achieving beautiful shaded effects.

Even from the standpoint of the shape of the older enamel objects, one often encounters pieces with a “porcelain” form, meaning coffee pots and pitchers with a rounded shape, identical to that of similar porcelain objects.

From a value perspective, older enamel pieces are rare and therefore highly sought after by collectors, especially if in good condition. It is necessary to check the state of preservation of the piece, if the decoration is intact, if the piece is pierced at the bottom, if the parts are present and all original (sometimes pieces with replaced parts are found, such as lids), if there are retouched and repainted parts. This significantly limits the final value of the enamel object.