Vintage Jakob Bengel Art Deco machine age, beautiful red galalith and chrome geometric brooch

Stunning space age vintage Art Deco brooch by Jakob Bengel, made in 1933. This piece is beautifully engineered out of a red galalith geomentric piece (type of early plastic similar to bakelite) and shiny chrome. The reverse shows the neatly covered rivet construction, creating this simple and elegant design.

The brooch has a length of about 3 1/4 inches and a width of about 1/2 inch. It fastens with an older style 'safety pin' design hook clasp and pin.

This brooch is very similar to a 1935 book piece from Lindemann's Bengel book on page 177. A photo of the book piece is shown as the last picture in this listing, but just for comparison, it is not for sale here.

The brooch is in very good vintage condition. The chrome plating is lovely and clean, and the galalith is great.

Jakob Bengel was a chain and costume jewellery factory, founded by Jakob Bengel in 1873 in Idar-Oberstein, Germany.

Until 1920, the company specialised in the production of watch chains and chatelaines (pendants for pocket watches). In the 1920s and 1930s, it became one of the leading manufacturers of fashion jewellery in the Art Deco style.

It was during the Bauhaus and Art Deco period that designers were looking to obtain new materials and inspiration to produce costume jewellery. Inspired by French Avant-Garde and other fashion trendsetters such as Coco Chanel, Bengel started to produce experimental jewellery. The pieces, catalogued 1924-1939, combined brass and chrome with geometric shapes of coloured galalith.