Antique German Dresden Mesh Purse — 1920s Art Deco Evening Bag with Kiss Clasp

A fine ring mesh evening bag, built from thousands of tiny linked rings so the whole thing pours through your hand like fabric. Across the gold is an enameled geometric design in darker bronze, angular forms running on the diagonal through the body and a band carried across the bottom just above the points. The pattern is worked into the mesh itself rather than printed over it, which is why it has held for a hundred years.

It hangs from a stamped and chased frame with a scrolled border and a dark enameled band along the top. The hem finishes in pointed vandyke tabs rather than running straight, which is the detail that puts it in the 1920s. The kiss clasp closes with two black ribbed finials set in brass collars.

Inside, the original cream silk lining is still there, stitched by hand through the pierced edge of the frame. It has come loose along one edge, clean and easy to reattach.

Frame width 4 inches, on its original chain.