VIENNA BRONZE

Vienna Bronze

The tradition of Vienna Bronze can be traced to the middle of the 19th century. Around 50 manufacturers resided in Vienna at the turn of the century, as small Austrian bronze sculpture with its fine detail enjoyed great popularity.

At this time numerous sculptors and modellers were active in selling their work and models to bronze manufacturers, who then reproduced these. This means that a stamp (hallmark) alone shows who the manufacturer of a Bronze is, but not who the creator was. The artists remained largely unknown. Of course there are several artists whose works are also well-known, such as Lorenzl, Zach, etc. But even they did not work on every piece themselves, only the original model. One had chasers for the subsequent reproduction. Thus there are also differences in price for identical models, depending on the quality of the work.

The quality of the final piece depended on how gifted the chaser was and how perfectly he carried out his work. The painting of the final finish too was, and still is, an important factor.

Animal figures can occasionally be found for a few hundred pounds, though sculptures in pristine condition and larger figures can be worth several thousand pounds. Value is affected by condition. The cold painted decoration is relatively easy to damage and worn Enamel will reduce value considerably.