David Andersen - Estate 20K Gold Plate Over Sterling Silver Enamel Butterfly Flora Dangly Earrings (VE547)

David Andersen - Vintage 20K Gold Plate Over Sterling Silver Enamel Butterfly Flora Dangly Earrings. These whimsical earrings are crafted from gold plate over sterling silver, hallmarked 925 and a makers mark D.A. for David Anderson. These earrings feature vintage era styling, and quality craftsmanship. These unique earrings are comprised of a tear-drop shaped frame, which is decorated with exquisite flowers and butterflies. The earrings are sterling silver, with a gold overlay, and beautifully enamelled. The earrings have a floral surmount, with posts and secure disc type backings. The earrings are dimensional, which artistically is very pleasing to the eye, and takes these earrings to another level. They are playful yet elegant, and so unique. These exquisite earrings are made in the David Anderson workshop in Norway. Beautiful earrings! 

History: David-Andersen is a famous Norwegian jewelry company founded by goldsmith David Anderson in Oslo in 1876.  

David Andersen was born in Norway in 1843. He learned his trade as an apprentice in Oslo.He opened his own workshop in 1876 in Christiania, which is now called Oslo.

He made high-quality silver and gold items. His traditional Norwegian filigree work became very popular. The company won two gold medals at the Paris World Exhibition in 1900.

David Andersen died in 1901. His son, Arthur Andersen, took charge of the business. Arthur introduced bright, colorful enamel (a glossy, melted glass coating) on silver and gold. This colorful enamel became the main trademark of the brand.

The family changed the name slightly to David-Andersen in 1942. They started marking their pieces with the letters "D-A

The company made many brooches, earrings, and bracelets shaped like leaves, flowers, and butterflies. 

Over the decades, the brand followed major art trends. They designed pieces in Art Nouveau (wavy, natural lines), Art Deco (sharp, geometric shapes), and 1950s Modernism (clean, abstract shapes). 

Later on, talented artists like Uni David-Andersen and Bjørn Sigurd Østern designed bold, modern silver jewelry for the company. The company stayed in the family through multiple generations. Vintage enamel and silver pieces from David-Andersen are now rare and heavily sought after by collectors all over the world. The company still makes luxury jewelry in Norway today. 

History: Enamel jewelry, with its origins in ancient civilizations like Egypt and Greece boasts a rich history, evolving through the Byzantine Empire, Renaissance, and into modern times, with techniques like cloisonné and champlevé shaping its artistic expression. 

The process was invented in 1805 by Italian chemist Luigi Brugnatelli who plated a very thin gold layer on top of silver. Since then, it has become commonplace in the jewelry world, with many base metals covered in gold, silver, or rhodium.

The story of silver mining began about 5,000 years ago. Silver was first mined around 3,000 BCE in Anatolia, now located in modern-day Turkey. The precious metal helped early civilizations in the Near East, Ancient Greece to flourish.

The term sterling silver denotes any silver alloy in which pure silver makes up at least 92.5 percent of the content. One theory is that the word sterling comes from the name Easterlings—coiners from east German states brought to England during the reign of Henry II (1154–89) to improve the quality of the coinage.

Measurements: Earrings 71.00 mm x 27.50 mm 

Weight: 22.90 grams 

Condition: Excellent 

Origin: Norway          Provenance: Netherlands, Amsterdam 

Date: Circa 1990