Ornate antique likely German Victorian to Edwardian era silver-like compact, "Alpacca" and maker hallmarks with original beveled mirror, powder puff, etc, intact inside! NOT silver, the Alpaca or Alpacca mark means it's in a sterling silver-looking alloy. A beautiful piece for sure and, who is to know :). Unfortunately, Alpaca silver isn't actually silver at all It's an alloy of copper, nickel, and zinc originally manufactured in Germany! It may not be precious, but it shines with a high-polish finish just like silver, & its price & durability make it an easy add to your everyday beauty collection!
The "Alpacca" alloy was developed in 1823 by the German chemist Dr. Ernst August Geitner (1783-1852). It was very similar in its appearance to silver, but significantly cheaper. Therefore, this new alloy was first called "Argentan". It consisted of 20% nickel, 55% copper and 25% zinc. The new silver-imitating alloy soon became very popular. The Gebrueder Henninger (Henninger Bros.) proposed a similar alloy (5-30% nickel, 45-70% copper and 8-45% zinc with trace amounts of lead, tin and iron) which they called "Neusilber". Later both Argentan and Neusilber were used under the trade name of Alpacca. The great advantage of the use of Alpacca alloy as the base metal for silver plating is that the appearance of the objects does not change significantly with the wearing away of the silver layer.
Excellent condition. No damage to note other than a few tiny dark 'dot' marks to the silvering on the back side of the mirror. See images for all measurements.
