A fine enamel on silver gilt dish circa 1870, Vienna, maker Hermann Ratzersdorfer, hallmarked wit

A fine enamel on silver gilt dish circa 1870, Vienna, maker Hermann Ratzersdorfer, hallmarked with the 1867 type dog`s head mark and maker`s mark `HR` to the edge of the silver gilt rim and foot, the well decorated with classical maidens within a white and black dotted border, the rim similarly decorated with maidens in various landscapes featuring a waterfall, mountains, classical buildings and trees, the reverse decorated with classical landscapes with various figures, and the base with a silver gilt rim and inset with an enamelled panel decorated with a fortified harbour with a small boat at sea, 5in (12.5cm) diameter. * Hermann Ratzersdorfer was active in Vienna from 1843-81. Born in 1817 in Pressburg (now Bratislava in present-day Slovakia), his father was an antiquities dealer. At the end of 1843 Hermann moved to Vienna and established himself as a master silversmith and enameller, exhibiting at the Viennese Trade Exhibition of 1845, the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London, the 1855 Paris Exhibition and others in London & Vienna, respectively in 1871 and 1873. He retired in 1881, turning his business over to his son, Julius