192

Keyston Bros. Silver Mounted Parade Bridle Set

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:25.00 USD Estimated At:1,000.00 - 1,750.00 USD
Keyston Bros. Silver Mounted Parade Bridle Set
Advertising, Firearms, Antiques, Collectibles, Antique Furniture, Native American Artifacts, Navajo Jewelry, Silver, Gold, Montana History Artifacts, Navajo Indian Rugs, Taxidermy Mounts, Slot Machines, Cash Registers, Early Chinese Artifacts.
Offered for sale is a great example of a Keyston Brothers Silver Mounted Parade Bridle Set. The set features beautiful dark leather, wonderful floral motif engraving, sterling silver, and silver tone accents. In 1868, the effects of the gold rush and the "forty-niners" still lingered in San Francisco. A booming port and bustling city of 139,000 souls, The City struggled for respectability. On May 1 of that year James Keyston began Keyston Bros., a firm which today serves the furniture and transportation industries out of 21 locations and has sales of almost $40 million. James began making whips and lashes in the stable of his father's home on Church Street in San Francisco. He purchased his leather sides from a local tannery and toiled that first week to produce his hand-braided whips and lashes. Beginning the following Monday, he traveled on foot from livery stable to livery stable and by nightfall had sold his entire week's work and made enough money to buy leather for the next week's production. Open freighters, stage coach drivers, teamsters and cattle ranchers were using Keyston bullwhips, black snakes, and drivers. James was establishing a reputation of quality at a fair price. The piece shows exceptional quality, with some signs of use and wear. Previous examples of Keyston Bros. parade sets have sold for over $900. Marked "Keyston Bros. S.F. Calif. Sterling.". The bit alone measures 8 1/4" long, and 6 1/2" wide.