An American Silver and Mixed Metal "Saracenic" Coffee Pot, Tiffany & Co., New York, the design attributed to Edward C. Moore, circa 1882

of slender baluster form with elongated spout and bulbous hinged lid, the body chased with foliate arabesques and rosettes and accentuated with copper teardrops and shaped panels of inlaid niello and silver-gilt geometric patterns, marked on base and numbered 7054-8562

good condition
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Both Edward C. Moore and Charles Grosjean designed works in the "Saracenic" style, but this piece - particularly in the use of color - is more characteristic of the former's work.  More is experimenting with Islamic-style forms and decorative motifs, enhanced with inlaid metals, as early as the mid 1870s; a pitcher in this style was the first piece of Tiffany silver acquired by a museum, and the first piece of American silver to enter the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (illustrated John Loring, Magnificent TIffany Silver, p. 62).

In 1886 Moore designed a "Saracenic" coffee pot with chasing very close to the offered example (illustrated ibid., p. 72).  In that pot the chasing is highlighted by enamel patterns by John T. Curran, rather than the accomplished inlaid metalwork and niello of the offered example.  Both of these peices belong to a group of chased and colored Saracenic-design items which Moore devised in the lead-up to the 1889 Paris Exhibition.  Shaped quatrefoils inlaid with niello also appear on a loving cup made for the 1889 Exposition; the Jeweler's Weekly stressed its "graceful, curved lines" (see ibid., pp. 68-69).