Designer: Richard Rohac (1906 – 1956)

Item: Pair of Fish Toothpick Holders or Candlesticks

Manufactured by: Richard Rohac

Country of origin: Austria

Year made: Ca. 1950

Materials: Brass

Dimensions: 4” x 2 ½” and the round base is 1 ¾” in diameter           

Condition: Very good.          

Description: Here is a pair of the famous Rohac jumping fish toothpick holders or candlesticks.  One is marked with the clearly visible reverse Rs and Made in Austria and the other with the Made in Austria and a partial reversed Rs mark.  We have seen these advertised as toothpick holders, pencil holders and candlesticks, and they certainly can function as each. However, Rohac made a few interesting toothpick holders that used a fish design that are well documented in his catalog as for toothpicks. This design is documented in one of Rohac’s catalogs.

Rohac was a master metal craftsman who began and completed his apprenticeship with the Werkstatte Hagenauer in Vienna, Austria as a teenager and stayed with the workshop another nine years before opening his own metalwork business in 1932.  His works are very high quality design and construction.  We have seen a few of these over the past couple of years and they can sometimes be found on eBay and other sites for between $250 and $350 for a single.