Casserole w/Lid, Ernest Sohn, Contessa Royal Vitrified, MCM, Vintage

• Pattern:  Royal or Contessa
• Made: in USA
• Vintage: 1958 - early 1960's
• Details:  Such a beautiful and utilitarian dish, it's actually a sought after collectible too!  This Casserole Dish can also be used as a Serving Bowl, it is elegant enough to use at the table and it's Oven Proof.  This specific design, the octagon shape with the gorgeous metal pine cone finial, is part of the Ernest Sohn "Contessa" design, (Replacements.com shows it as "Royal" but we have seen the actual 1960 advertisement referring to it as "Contessa"), all the pieces of this pattern are octagon shaped and have the same pine cone finial.  The bottom is embossed with the Ernest Sohn Creations logo, a large "S" and stamped "Made in USA".  This piece retains its original sticker which probably means it's never been used.  The sticker reads: "Oven Proof China Designed by Ernest Sohn".  Ernest Sohn was an extraordinary designer, we have a brief history of the man and his business below.  This is a wonderful piece to use for entertaining, on a buffet table, for china cabinet display or great as a gift for an Ernest Sohn admirer / collector.
• Material: Vitrified China
• Dimensions: 9.0 inches Wide (not including handles), 11.5 inches Wide (including handles), Approx. 7.0 inches Tall (including lid and finial).  
• Condition:  Vintage - Used.  Excellent Condition.  One minor dark spot on the inside, where the lid rests, photographed for you.  Please review all pictures and make sure you love this item before purchasing, we can't accept returns.  Please remember these are VINTAGE and ANTIQUE items, they are NOT new, every effort has been made to show scratches, wear and tear and imperfections. 

Ernest Sohn Creations was founded in 1951 in New York by Ernest Sohn, a German immigrant who fled to the USA during the Nazi invasion of Germany in 1936 and settled in NY.  While working at Weil-Freeman, a giftware importer in NY, he designed a few pieces which Weil-Freeman purchased.  Ernest decided to become a freelance designer and in October of 1938 he created a line for Ebeling and Reuss which gave him credibility as a designer.  After WWII he returned to New York to work for the gift house, Rubel and Company, as designer and production manager.  There he was exposed to different materials such as glass, ceramics, metalwork, wood, and plastics.  In June 1951 Ernest left Rubel to open his own business, he opened a large showroom on Fifth Avenue and never looked back.  Early on he partnered with Jack Orenstein, a well known and experienced salesman, who became the exclusive representative for Ernest Sohn Creations.  In 1967 several changes happened, both Ernest Sohn Creations and  Jack Orenstein Associates merged with Liquidonics Industries of Westbury, New York .  That same year Etco Industries, Inc. became the successor to Jack Orenstein Associates. In 1970 another merger, this time Etco Industries became a division of Baltimore-based American Trading and Production Corporation.  Sohn had less control of the company and was not able to experiment as he once did, he lost interest in the business and retired in 1978.  After his retirement, American Trading and Production Corporation used the Ernest Sohn Creations brand and continued to produce Sohn designs for several years after.  Several of Soh's designs received awards and have been included in the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA).  Ernest Sohn died in May 2006 at the age of 92.