Featured Collectible - Vintage Syroco

I got all the vintage Syroco items that I found last weekend listed - talk about a collection! I've been poking around eBay looking at the wide variety of items this company - The Syracuse Ornamental Company - made over the years... I was really surprised at some of the amazing things I found... but more on that in a minute!

First I want to give you a bit of history, the best I found was on a corkscrew collector's website that had this nice little description:

"The SYRACUSE ORNAMENTAL COMPANY, also known as SYROCO, was founded in the late 1890's by an Austrian woodcarver named Adolph Holstein. Initially the company produced ornamental carvings for the embellishment of coffins and furniture as well as the interiors of fashionable homes. As demand increased, a molding technique was developed where Syroco could create perfect replicas of their original carvings. These molds also featured a wood grain within the mold, allowing for a more detailed aesthetic. The recipe of wood flour, waxes, and resins combined with compression molding created an inexpensive, but high quality product. As the 40's approached, demand for Syroco was waning with the new popularity of Danish Modern with its clean simple lines and less ornamentation on furniture. Novelty items became a new venture for the company; focusing on housewares, barware, and items for the smoker, as well as other offerings.

During the 1950's, Syroco started to change directions again. And, while novelty items still appear in their catalogs of the time. Highly stylized wall mirrors, sconces, and decorations became the company's focus.

In 1953, Syroco introduced a process for obtaining the finish on these seemingly gilted home accesories, called "metalgold"; a process, as the catalog states, "...wherein real metal is deposited on the object and toned and shaded by skilled hand operations."

Interesting! It certainly explains the huge variety of Syroco items, and how Syroco Wood - which isn't wood at all, but just looks like it - came into being.

So let's look at some of the great stuff that I found, starting with my own pieces that are up for auction right now:

Vintage Gold Syroco Diamond Starburst Clock - All the Syroco clocks are amazing, with that perfect mid-century modern style!

Vintage Gold Syroco Floral & Fleur De Lis Mirror - I just love that this mirror has a fleur de lis design! This one is actually pretty tame compared to some of the Syroco mirrors that are out there...

Set of 4 Diamond Floral Gold Syroco Wall Plaques - I showed you these before, wouldn't they go perfectly with the clock?!?

Vintage Gold Syroco Rooster Wall Plaques - These are really interesting - I think they look like they are fighting, what do you think?

Vintage Gold Syroco Framed Floral Prints - I showed you these before too, I'm really having a hard time parting with them, they are so pretty!

That's all that I have, but it certainly doesn't even scratch the surface of what is out there! Here are some of my favorites:

Vintage Syroco Tie Rack - Does it get any cooler than this? Maybe...

Vintage Syroco Wood Zodiac Clock - This doesn't have the Syroco label, but the seller and I agree that it is probably a Syroco Wood clock - look at the amazing detail! It's on sale right now too, making it that much more tempting...

Vintage Syroco Wood Bartender Bottle Opener - I guess the corkscrews and bottle openers are highly collectible, it will be interesting to see the final bid price on this guy!

Vintage Syroco Wood Viking Ship Wall Plaque - I mean who doesn't need a 40" long viking ship for there wall? Seriously.

Gold Syroco Wood Clock with Matching Sconces - These are so pretty, I love the candles they chose to use too!

Vintage Syroco Wood Bookends - I think I could be quite happy with just a collection of Syroco bookends, they are so cool!

Ok, I'll stop now, I think you get the idea - Syroco = Awesome. :)