Jewellery, Watches and Objects of Vertu

An Austrian silver and enamel cigarette case, circa 1900, of rectangular form, enamelled with a young lady dressed in a plumed hat, and in her undergarments, wearing long black gloves and black stockings and revealing her petticoats, with maker’s mark G.A.S. for Georg Adam Scheid, Vienna, stamped hexagonal Diana head hallmark (in use between 1867-1922) and town code A for Vienna, 900/1000 standard, dimensions 87 x 60.5mm. £500-£700

Georg Adam Scheid (1838-1921) was born in Schönau Baden, Germany. At the age of sixteen, he began an apprenticeship, working in both Pforzheim and Stufttgart. In 1858 he travelled to Vienna to work for the goldsmith Michael Markowitsch. Scheid became a partner in the firm in 1862 and the company was renamed Marakowitsch & Scheid. The business premises were located at 8 Sandwirtgasse, later moving to 83 Gumpendorfer Straße. Michael’s son Adolf joined the business, later taking on the management of the firm until the company ceased trading in 1898.

On leaving the partnership, Scheid moved next door to 85 Gumpendorfer Straße. The business proved to be extremely successful, excelling in silver and enamel work, and employing up to three hundred workers at their manufacturing premises.

As well as a talented silversmith and artist, Scheid was also an astute businessman. In 1888 he open his own refinery where precious metal wastes could be rendered for re-use. The plant was so productive that they exported refined precious metals worldwide. In 1894 Scheid was joined in partnership by his nephew and two sons, Arthur and Robert. The business had already participated in the Jubilee exhibition of 1889, and exhibited at the Paris 1900 Exposition Universelle. In 1911, at the age of 74, Scheid retired, his sons taking over the management of the company.

World War I had a devastating effect on the business, with a total collapse in overseas trade and the dire economic situation in Austria and Germany leading to the liquidation of the part of the business involved in decorative silver and gold accessories, although the refinery continued to trade.

Scheid died in 1921, and was buried in the family tomb at the Evangelischer Friedhof Simmering, Vienna. In 1962 the refinery Scheid had founded was merged with the Ludwig Roessler GmbH, leading to the founding of Ögussa GmbH. Ogussa is still located at 85 Gumpendorfer Straße.