Here is a totally splendid Retro 1940s brass & red enamel powder compact complete with its original mesh sifter, for loose powder, & powder puff with the satin strap across the back, bearing the manufacturer’s brand name - REx Fifth Avenue. The top is enamelled in a pretty red colour & has a bass relief scrolly leafy floral design around the centre. This is an exceptionally large compact measuring a full 10.2cms in diameter (4) but still very flat - only 1cm thick (3/8th) This also has its original red fekt sipcover to keep it nice. I love this as it’s so utterly grand looking - it’s one of the big compacts manufacturd by the Fifth Avenue company, under their ‘Rex’ line, which were nicknamed ‘Flapjacks’ because of their large & shallow size. This is truly a fabulous bit of retro Art Deco design !! If you collect vintage powder compacts because of the beautiful designs, this is a bit of a corker !! CONDITION:- This compact has a few issues but nothing really serious. The base has a few dark spots & stains - these may possibly be able to be cleaned off with a proper cleaner, however this may have been lacquered & so a brass cleabner should not be used. This has been used in the past & so there may be some powder residue, although this has been cleaned out. I think probably this dates from the late 1940s, after WWII ended, as the use of brass indicates that metals were becoming available again. During the war, the early plastics such as Lucite & Bakelite were the materials of choice, as metals were all needed for munitions etc. FIFTH AVENUE The Fifth Avenue company produced a few different lines of powder compacts, all called different names - Rex was the most popular of the Fifth Avenue compact lines, which also included Dorset, Columbia, Dale, & Zell. Rex (and most of the other Fifth Avenue lines) did not always print hallmarks on compacts themselves. Instead, Rex signed the ribbon across the puff. Zell typically signed the puffs themselves. This can hamper identification as puffs often fade, deteriorate, or get separated from their compacts. These compacts were famously all sold at the Saks 5th Avenue department store in New York, but they were manufactured by the Rex Products Corporation, who were also based in 5th Avenue, NY at no. 302, & who produced powder compacts from the 1930s to the 1950s. Rex Fifth Avenue Brass & Red Enamel Flapjack Powder Compact, Including Original Sifter & Puff, Vintage Retro 1940S Beauty
