Hello everyone,
Thought that I'd show a recent find from an estate sale. The item had an usual look and the price was right, so I bought it.
A little research online indicates that the "Melted Bullet", as the estate tag called it, is an American Arts and Crafts period piece by a coppersmith named Dirk Van Erp. During the first few years of the twentieth century Van Erp was employed as a coppersmith at the Mare Island Navy Yard in California. In his spare time he purchased spent shells and made decorative vases out of them, which he gave to friends. What began as more-or-less as a hobby or sideline to his job at the shipyard, became a fulltime pursuit. He opened a shop in San Francisco c. 1908, not too long after the devastating earthquake in that city. He branched out into other copper and glass decorative items, and became well known and in demand. His works are very popular among collectors today. I've included a phot of a decorative arts shop in San Francisco where a similar item is for sale. Dirk Van Erp is a fascinating fellow and if you are interested, you should check him out online. Thanks for looking.
Tom
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