This is a very beautiful antique dining room piece, of truly Art Nouveau design, consisting of a solid brass frame with a solid brass gong, attached to a gracefully-shaped carved oak base that has 2 little Art Nouveau solid brass “racks” to hold the striker. I acquired this piece 50 years ago, approximately 1972, at an antique sale and I have no memory of what I paid for it. It has proudly graced our dining room for many decades. In our last move, for retirement, the matching, original striker was somehow, sadly lost!!!! We are in the process of retirement-induced down-sizing, and no longer hosting large dinner parties (12-20 people) which were the right occasions for using a dinner gong! So, although I hate to part with it, I began to look for comparable dinner gongs about 2 years ago, and I have yet to find one that is really nearly the same, although I have found a few that are Art Nouveau, mostly all brass and, very occasionally, brass and oak pieces. I thus believe that this is a rare example of a table-top Art Nouveau dinner gong, if not one-of-a-kind. My research leads me to believe that the piece came from Great Britain or elsewhere in the UK. Even today, almost all the comps I find are with/from UK/ GB sellers. Measurements measured in inches; cm = approx. 12.25 (31 cm) Tall. 10 (25.5 cm) Wide at the top of the brass structure. 13.5(34 cm) Wide at the widest part of the oak base. 5 (12.75 cm) Deep at the deepest (front to back) part of the oak base. 6 (15 cm) =. Diameter of the round striker plate. 5.75(14.5 cm) (on center) =. Distance between the 2 striker “racks”. 9 (23 cm) = Length of the new / replacement strikers included. Given its age, this piece is in remarkably intact original condition. There is no damage to the brass structure and only very slight patina on the reverse of the striker plate, which I could have polished, but did not. The brass is overall bright and shiny. The oak base, likewise, has no damage. The old finish (some kind of varnish or shellac) is slightly worn in a few places–not distracting. The only problem is that the original striker, which was in the same oak with a felt-covered head, is now missing. As we still have some unopened moving boxes, I will never stop looking for it. It could be one of your “hunting” projects. They are included with the item, and in the item price. So, you would have something to use, while you hunt for an original antique. Because the new striker heads are smaller than the original, the sound they make is gentler than what I remember of the sound of the original striker. I actually like this softer sound better. Due to its size / shape / weight, this item will be packed in a 16.5″ x 12.5″ x 12.5″ –actually a small “moving box. With packing materials, it will weigh approximately 6.5 to 7 lbs. Please message with any questions. Thank you for looking. This item is in the category “Antiques\Other Antiques”. The seller is “ekmsc” and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped to United States.
- Style: Art Nouveau
- Age: 1880-1920 Art Nouveau Period
- Maker: Unknown, very likely GB / UK maker
- Material: Brass Structure with Carved Oak Base
- Original/Reproduction: Original
- Color: Polished Brass & Warm Oak Finish on Stand
- Country/Region of Origin: United Kingdom