Brigg Umbrella!
MADE IN ENGLAND. Oak handle, Fox frame.
This is absolutely wonderful! Thomas Brigg started his parasol and umbrella company on St James Street in 1828--although Brigg itself strangely holds that the firm was started in 1836! From the start he had a commitment to hand-making his umbrellas and parasols--a commitment that continues to this day, making Brigg THE world's top umbrella maker.
Naturally, Brigg had many famous clients. In 1894 it received a Royal Warrant to supply Queen Victoria with umbrellas, and Neville Chamberlain carried his Brigg umbrella to the Munich talks with Hitler in 1939--the famous picture of his declaring (wrongly...) "Peach in Our Time!" featured his Brigg. the artist Augustus John had a Brigg made with a pencil in the handle so that he could sketch outside while it was raining.
Brigg merged with the saddlers and leather goods makers Swaine, Adeney in 1943, to become Swaine, Adeney, & Brigg.
Briggs are special as they are handcrafted with a single piece of natural wood being used as the handle and the shaft; the brass mechanism is located *inside* the natural wood handle. All of the fittings--from the ferrule to the maker's band on the handle--are brass, and the button that is used to close the strap is mother-of-pearl.
This umbrella dates from the 1990s, and carries the Royal Warrant to Her Majesty The Queen Mother on the handle.
I believe that this umbrella is Oak. It has some minor patina of the handle from use, as shown, including a small white mark on the handle--this is not a chip, but a surface mark! The canopy is a little dusty in the crease areas--but this will be taken care of with the first shower it's exposed to! The mechanism and frame work perfectly; this was used extremely sparingly.
It was, of course, hand-made in England.
Brigg umbrellas start at around $600, and hold their value extremely well; indeed, used examples are sometimes more expensive than the current offerings! This is NOT a disposable umbrella; Brigg will happily repair their products, and even offer a free re-furling service for umbrellas that have been recently used in the rain. Indeed, it is common among upper-class English households for Brigg umbrellas to be among the items expressly identified in wills; you too will likely leave this to your heirs!
This beauty is thus a bargain at just $165, OR OFFER, boxed, shipped, and insured in the USA.