A Canadian Coin silver tablespoon pair in the Fiddle pattern, with engraved initial H. The spoons have excellent hallmarks, comprising of makers mark IM, NB for New Brunswick, and pseudo hallmarks lion passant, anchor and Georgian duty mark bust (this last one sideways). Canadian Maritime silversmiths of the early 19th century favoured imitation hallmarks, dictated by competition from imported English silver. St John silversmiths adopted the NB hallmark for New Brunswick, following their colleagues in Halifax (Langdon, pg 22). John Munro was born in 1791, and freed in 1813, he took over his father's shop in 1819. His premises were destroyed twice by fire, first in 1837 and again in 1874. He used a number of different pseudo marks, and also used IM and JM as makers marks (Donald Mackay, Silversmiths and Related Craftsmen of the Atlantic Provinces, page 107). Note - we earlier attributed this makers mark to James Melick, see details below, based on the book "Canadian Silversmiths 1700-1900, published 1966, pag...

A lovely antique silver child's porringer, in traditional Queen Anne style, although it was made in Georgian times. The porringer has a central cartouche with script initials MB, which are Victorian in style so would have been added by a later owner. The porringer is decorated with curved lobes and flutes, and the cartouche is surrounded by foliage. The porringer also has punched floral decoration, and the S shaped handles are banded. The gauge is quite thin, more suited for display than for use. The base of the porringer is engraved "RB over IG, 1769", in contemporary engraving, indicating the porringer could have originally been a wedding present, or a christening present for a child born the following year. Porringers of the small (child's size) size are quite rare, few have survived. The hallmarks are very clear, and although the makers mark punch has some wear, it is still legible.

An interesting antique silver and enamel vesta case, with a black and yellow enamel maritime flag, engraved SALLY 1907, we assume Sally was a yacht. The back is engraved "Presented by Dr. Lauder to W.H.J. Hirst", the engaving is well done and still very clearly legible, with no wear. The vesta is the traditional rectangular shape, with striker on the base, and has a suspension ring for attachment to a fob chain. The interior still has some gilding visible, and the hinged lid works perfectly. The vesta is clearly hallmarked for Robert Chandler, Birmingham 1906, the lid is also clearly hallmarked. Robert Chandler (1902-1924) appears to have specialised in silver enamel vesta cases.

An antique silver travelling inkwell, presented as a memento during the Anglo Boer War by Major General Arthur Sandbach. The inkwell is engraved "A memento of the F.I.D. Natal Army, From A.E. Sandbach 1900", the engraving is crisp and clear. The inkwell is cylindrical, with a bayonet fitted screw top domed lid, and patented anti-spill glass inkwell, which has an ingenious spout shaped interior. The inkwell is superbly designed and the quality is excellent, as you would expect from Sampson Mordan. The inkwell has been well used, and has numerous small dents (around 8 separate dents), the largest is 1 cm long. The base is clearly hallmarked for Chester 1899, alongside makers mark "S.M & Co Ld" in shaped shield, alongside "17". The interior is gilded, and is stained with remnants of old ink. The inkwell would have originally had a spring loaded cork insert in the lid, to keep a tight seal, this is missing. A similar inkwell by Mordan can be seen on the Steppes Hill website, item 165702, also missing the cork and...

An interesting antique silver caddy spoon with a camel finial, this is the crest of the Worshipful Company of Grocers, a spice laden camel. The spoon has a pear shaped bowl, the well modelled camel is facing left, to show it is bringing spices from the East. The hallmarks are clear, including makers mark J.N.M for John Newton Mappin, this mark was used between 1887-1897. The spoon is also stamped "Mappin & Webb, London", this is above a cross in circle hallmark, we are not sure the significance of this mark (all assistance welcome). The Worshipful Company of Grocers Company is one of the 12 Great Livery Companies, ranked second in precedence (it was once ranked first, until rumour has it that a camel in a procession released a smell that offended Queen Elizabeth I!) - source Worshipful Company of Grocers website, www.grocershall.co.uk). The Company was founded in 1345 by the Guild of Pepperers, responsible for maintaining spice standards. The 4th Grocers Hall was built in 1890 (unfortunately destroyed by fire...

A rare Sampson Mordan sterling silver thermometer case, made to be attached to a chatelaine. The case is tubular, the sliding lid also attached to the chain so it can never be lost. This is a quality item, extremely well made. The original chain is connected to the lid and body with 6 silver eyes, it also has suspension link for attachment to chatelaine. The body is plain apart from incised circles, the base and lid have a raised circular end. The base of the tube is stamped with number 13. The tube is clearly hallmarked with Chester marks for 1910, alongside worn but legible makers mark, all underneath a clear "S. MORDAN & Co". The lid is not hallmarked. The thermometer (which is not working) is marked "SM Made in China" with centigrade symbol, we assume it is not original, but are not sure if the SM could be Sampson Mordan?

A Patrick Mavros silver sculpture of a lion on a black hardwood base, medium in size. The lion is realistically modelled, roaring with raised paw, standing on black hardwood base. The base has a silver PM button trademark, the lion is also fully hallmarked with PM makers mark and the Zimbabwe sable in triangle standard mark. Patrick Mavros (www.patrickmavros.com) has built a luxury Africa themed silver sculpture business over the last 35 years, he is based in Harare, with outlets in London, Mauritius and Nairobi. His customers include the Royal Family, Prince William and Kate are collectors. Other customers include JK Rowling and King Carlos of Spain. This model is an early Mavros model, and is no longer in production.

A pair of antique silver serving spoons, with beautiful pierced and engraved handles, in pristine condition. The detail of the piercing is excellent, an architectural feature surrounded by foliage. The spoons are a useful size, ideal for serving. The spoons appear to have never been used, such a pity for such beautiful items. The hallmarks on both spoons are clear, and include makers mark for the Sheffield firm of Hawksworth & Eyre, who worked between 1841 and 1932, when they were taken over by Ellis of Barker Brothers. Charles Hawksworth and John Eyre exhibited a wide variety of goods at the Great Exhibition of 1851, they had showrooms in London Fleet Street and Montreal, Canada. (Culme, Directory of Gold & Silversmiths, page 222).

A fabulous cast silver vine leaf wine label, pierced for Sherry, made by Benjamin Smith II for Rundell & Bridge. The label is single leaf, symmetrical in design, with textured finish, with a vine branch for attachment to the chain. The label is large and heavy, at 41 grammes one of the heaviest we have encountered. Most vine leaf labels are stamped from dies, and as such are much lighter. The book "Wine Labels 1730 -2003" notes that "Philip Rundell and Benjamin Smith III produced elegant cast symmetrical leaf labels" (page 90), and they depict a similar label, for Burgundy (fig 342, page 91), but with different vine stem design. The hallmarks are clear for 1832, no town mark is present. The makers mark BS in rectangular shield is clearly visible, but slightly obscured by the underlying texture of the leaf. This is mark 230 in Grimwade "London Goldsmiths" for Benjamin Smith II, different in shape and style from the marks used by Benjamin Smith III, his son, so at odds with quote from Wine Labels above. Benjami...

A set of six Art Deco sterling silver grapefruit spoons, in perfect condition. The spoons have fluted bowls, with strong tips for digging into grapefruit, the bowls are also gilded. The finials are pierced, the design looks like a stylised Fleur-De-Lys, reminds us of a Gothic arch. All 6 spoons have clear hallmarks.

A Georgian silver wine label by Hester Bateman, engraved for Brandy. The label rectangular with a pierced fret dome, this neoclassical design originated in the Bateman studio, and was copied by others, including Susannah Barker and Hampston & Prince in York (Wine Labels 1730-2003, pages 174 and 234). The label has a zig zag feather edge border, raised eyelets, the piercing of the scrolls in the dome is lovely. The label has 2 hallmarks, both clearly struck, makers mark HB in script for Hester Bateman and lion passant. The absence of a duty mark enables us to date the label to before 1784 when the duty mark was introduced, this neoclassical design is thought to orininate around 1770 (Wine Labels page 50).

A pair of Victorian silver grape scissors, with attractive handle design of symmetrical scrolls and loops. The set is very finely engraved (on the front side only) with a foliage pattern, very intricate, in typical Victorian fashion. The blades are the traditional grape scissor design, with one blade thicker with right angle to accommodate the other blade. The hinge has a silver cover, also engraved, the pin is silver as well. The hallmarks are clear but hidden by the engraving, both arms are hallmarked, including makers mark A&S for Aston and Son of Regent place, Birmingham, Thomas and William Aston ran the business between 1856 and 1861. Henry Aston (we assume another son) took over the business in 1862, it was still operating in 1930 as wedding ring manufacturers (Culme, Gold and Silversmiths, page 18).

An interesting set of 4 Cape silver Fiddle pattern tableforks, by Lodewyk Beck. They have no initials, although 1 fork has the remnants of an initial just visible. It appears 1 fork was made at a different time, as the hallmarks are struck differently from the other 3. The hallmarks include makers mark LB with 4 pseudo English hallmarks, including lion, duty mark, castle town mark and date letter a. What is interesting about the hallmarks is that they are all individually struck, with not too much care, both the sterling lion and the date letter have been struck upside down on one, it appears the order and orientation of hallmarks was not important to Cape silversmiths. The 4th fork, has the same hallmarks but struck further apart. Lodewyk Willem Christiaan Beck worked between 1847 and 1867, from Shortmarket street and Greenmarket Square.

A rare and lovely early Scottish Provincial Hanoverian tablespoon, with excellent marks. This is a very fine spoon, good weight and condition, a pleasure to hold. The spoon has a long drop, and quite a wide end with an oval shaped bowl. The spoon is initialled with script letter K, this is contemporary, and is engraved on the back of the spoon. The spoon has four very clear hallmarks, makers mark IS struck twice in a distinctive shaped punch, with two indentations on each side of the punch. The third hallmark is the Dundee "Pot of Lilies" town mark, the shape of each lily clearly visible. The forth mark is a letter "M" with unusual shape, occasionally used by John Steven (Turner, Directory of Scottish Provincial Silversmiths, pg 62, and Jackson, pg 600). A similar spoon by John Steven, without "M" mark, was sold as Lot 192 of "Private Collection of Scottish Provincial Flatware, Woolley & Wallis, January 2009, pg 34". John Steven was a very fine silversmith, we have just seen a pair of cast candlesticks...

A lovely 9 carat gold HMS Conway rowing medallion, awarded to L.H. Barradell, rowing at position 5 (we assume of 8). The medallion is beautifully cast, with a very realistically modelled ship. The medallion is perfectly preserved in its original box, marked "Old Fields Limited, Post Office Place, Church St, Liverpool". The hallmarks are very clear and include "9" and "375" indicating 9 carat gold. HMS Conway was a 19th century wooden battleship, used as a Naval Training School for cadets. It was stationed on the Mersey in Liverpool, which accounts for the origin of the medallion. It operated between 1859 and 1953. The motto was "Quit Ye Like Men Be Strong". L.H. Barradell rose to the rank of Commander, he completed his career in Kenya. He was awarded the Legion of Honour (Crois de Chevalier) by the President of the French Republic in recognition of his services during the war, during the battle of Jutland, when he was a Lt RNR (Lieutenant Royal Naval Reserve) (www.hmsconway.org web site). We have now...

An interesting open salt in triangular form, with central circular salt, and 3 cast hoof feet. The salt is decorated with 3 male busts, with high collars and long flowing hair, completed with hanging swags, which are repeated in the hand chased pierced border, which is very intricate with gadrooning and balls. The triangles on top have a floral design. Three hallmarks are present, small crown, large Fleur De Lys, and small device (possibly flower in pot?). We are not able to positively identify these hallmarks, one possibility in Neisse on the Polish border, but all assistance welcome, thank you. We have found similar examples of this triangular formed salt in the V&A museum, hence our tentative attribution to 17th century Germany, they are described as "Small triangular salt cellars mounted on three feet were common pieces of tableware in affluent homes in late 16th-century Germany. The cities of southern Germany dominated the goldsmiths craft there from the 15th to the early 19th centuries. Their goldsmiths...

A set of 6 Georg Jensen sterling silver Cypress pattern fruit spoons with triangular bowls, these would be called grapefruit spoons by the English. This is a fabulous set of grapefruit spoons, stunning design and very practical for use, strong bowl tips. This is a vintage set dating from 1960, all 6 pieces are fully hallmarked. The hallmarks include "GEORG JENSEN" in oval dots, above "STERLING DENMARK". All 6 pieces also carry London import marks, sponsors mark G.JLd for Georg Jensen (their London branch), oval U import mark, .925 sterling mark and date letters e and f for 1960 and 1961. The Cypress (or Cypres) pattern is #99 in the Jensen catalog, it was designed by Tias Eckhoff in 1954. The Cypress pattern won the design competition held for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Georg Jensen company (Georg Jensen, A tradition of Splendid Siulver, page 282). Tias Eckhoff, a Norwegian, has been described as one of Norway's most versatile designers. Note: - We also have a Jensen Cypress pattern flatware...

An interesting Hanau silver circular box, the lid an exact copy of a famous silver Dutch medallion of 1653 by Wouter Muller commemorating the death of Admiral Maarten Tromp. The lid has rich detail, a naval engagement with two Man-of War ships at close range, with an English ship sinking in the foreground, other ships in the background, all in high relief. The inscription around the edge reads :Waarom doet Muller Tromp door kunst van gout en silverleeven: om dat hy'd yzer eew door krygsdeugd heeft verdreven, obyt den. 10 aug: 1653", translated "Why does the art of Muller make Tromp live in gold and silver? Because his valour has removed from us the age of iron. Died 10 August 1653". The circular edge of the box is decorated with putti playing musical instruments, with birds (peacocks and owls), interspersed with blank oval cartouches. The interior is gilded, so it was possibly a snuff box, but could be used on a desk or dressing table for small items (ideal for cufflinks). The base is clearly hallmarked with ...

An interesting and beautiful Border Rifles Kelso antique Gold Shooting Fob Medallion, awarded to Corporal J Bennie for "Do-Or-Die Champion Cross". The fob features crossed rifles on a heart shaped background, surrounded by an oval frame under a crown, the front is engraved "Border Rifles Kelso 1904", the back is engraved "Won By Corpl J. Bennie Do-Or-Die Champion Cross", The fob also has 3 round pellets to complete the decoration, and a suspension ring with link, which is also hallmarked for 9 carat gold. The hallmarks are clear, makers mark WHH, 9 and .375 nine carat gold standard marks, Birmingham anchor and date letter e for 1904. We believe this fob refers to the Kelso Company of the Kings Own Scottish Borderers Regiment, now part of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. At the time this fob was awarded they had just returned from service in South Africa during the Boer war. Kelso is a Scottish border town in Roxburghshire, famous for Kelso Abbey. Sir Walter Scott attended school in Kelso, he described it as "...

A pair of Scottish Arts and Crafts silver napkin rings, with a wonderful planished (hand hammered) surface. The rings are a very pleasing quality and weight, and the condition is excellent. Both rings are clearly hallmarked with small hallmarks on the interior, one is 2003, the other 2006 but they match perfectly. The are also marked "STERLING 925". The rings are accompanied with original box marked "Eric N Smith Goldsmith Designer". Eric Smith was an award winning designer and Jeweller, based in Glasgow for over 50 years until his retirement in 2018. He also completed a project to restore the Glasgow hallmark in 2013, which had not been used since 1963.