Ferdinand Preiss (Preiß) (1882 Erbach - 1943 Berlin) Small ballerina Bronze chryselephantine figure with gold-coloured and silver-grey cold patination and finely carved ivory, mounted on a black, lightly veined, octagonal marble base. Characteristic, very graceful figure of a young girl in a graceful pose with outstretched arms dancing on pointe. Preiss received his training as an ivory carver from Philipp Willmann in Erbach, followed by trips to Milan, Rome and Paris in 1901. In 1906, he and Arthur Kassler founded the Preiss & Kassler company for ivory figures in Berlin, which also produced chryselephantine figures in a combination of ivory and bronze from around 1910. Preiss & Kassler specialised in small Art Nouveau and Art Deco sculptures, mostly dancers and nude figures, and was one of the most successful companies in this field from 1925 to 1943. Rest; total h. 17 cm. CITES certificate available. Cold painted bronze and carved ivory Chryselephantine figure of a young ballerina on a dark marble base. CITES included. Restored.