A Cape silver konfyt fork in the Fiddle pattern, with 3 tines. The tines are different from most konfyt forks, these are quite fat, widely spaced and short (3.3. cm). The fork has original owners initials TFM, the engraving in an unusual script, quite pleasing overall. The fork has makers mark I.B in oval punch, with the I and B co-joined. This is depicted in the book "Cape Silver and Silversmiths" by Stephan Welz as mark 20, page 146, for Johan Anton Bunning, a German soldier who arrived in the Cape in 1758 and died in 1793. He mark is confirmed as he made silver for the Dutch Reformed Church, whose records confirm him as maker, but the Fiddle pattern style of the fork is problematic, as it was only introduced circa 1800, so it is unlikely he made this fork. A number of alternatives exist, it could have been made by a son (Cape silversmiths regularly carried on using punches created by fathers). More likely is that this is the mark of another Cape silversmith, whose mark has not yet been attributed. IB or JB...

A rare pair of Cape Silver lemoen lepels (orange spoons), with an interesting provenance, they featured in the book Cape Silver and Silversmiths by Stephan Welz, pg 93. The spoons are the traditional lemoen lepel shape, with narrow, pointed boat shaped bowl, and triangular terminal, and Cape prick engraving. The spoons have a very elegant shape, the bowls deep and curved, the drop is distinctly v shaped, they have a lovely feel in the hand. Both spoons are clearly hallmarked with makers mark IL in rectangular punch for Jan Lotter, and also are punched with initials HB, we assume the original owner. Welz describes orange spoons as"probably the most attractive type of spoon made at the Cape, derived from Dutch spoons", pg 95. He also notes that all known examples are by Cape born silversmiths of the early 19th century (so not made by the more prolific English immigrants who arrived after 1815). Jan Lotter, who died young after a short career (1813-1817), was part of the Lotter family of Cape silversmiths, he ma...

A Cape silver konfyt fork, in the Old English pattern with feather edge decoration and 3 tines, dating it around 1790 to 1800. The fork is struck with a makers mark only, i:V:G in an unusual shaped punch, which moulds around the dotted i. This fork matches S 1787, the main difference being longer tines (we believe original, these have not been shortened) and a makers mark that is good but not as clearly struck as the other. Welz describes this maker as unknown, but Heller (History of Cape Silver Vol I, pg 163) lists this maker as Johann Voigt? Both authors depict a different IVG punch from this one, with an additional fish hallmark (see our tablespoon S 1571 by the same maker to see the different punch and fish hallmark). Overall we agree with Welz and are not convinced by the attribution to Voigt, it seems far more likely to belong to a "van G" maker (for example van Graan, a known Cape name). Overall an interesting hallmark that requires further research. Note - a matching konfyt fork by the same maker is a...

A Cape silver konfyt fork by the respected silversmith Johan Hendrik Vos, part of the Vos family of Cape Silversmiths. The fork is quite long and elegant, in the Old English pattern, and has no engraving. It has 3 tines, (later forks have 4 tines), so probably dates to before 1800. The fork also has a wide semi circular drop, also indicative of a date before 1800. The hallmarks are excellent, and consist of a square punch with 4 dots struck twice, either side of makers mark JHV in script in oval punch (Welz mark 152, Cape Silver and Silversmiths). Vos worked between 1766 and 1810, he apprenticed with Johann Hasse between 1761 and 1766. He married in 1770 and had 12 children, his wife Elizabeth continued his business after he died in 1810 by adding the hallmark Wed (Weduwee, or widow) next to his JHV makers mark (Welz mark 154). The Vos Family produced over 10 Cape Silversmiths between 1748 and 1862 (Heller, History of Cape Silver Vol 1, pg 66-71, and page 269 for a family tree). The 4 dot square punch was als...

A good set of early Old English tablespoons, with narrow elegant handles characteristic of the earlier Old English pattern. These spoons also have the initial B, and very clear hallmarks. These spoons all have the rare incuse duty mark (George III looking left), which was only in use for 18 months. As can be seen from the photographs, these marks are well struck and remain crisp, with no wear. George Smith was a prolific spoonmaker, this period predates his partnership with William Fearn (1786), the firm later became Eley and Fearn.

A very rare Cape Silver konfyt (preserve) fork, in the Feather Edge pattern. The fork has makers mark DHS, well struck and clear, along with a bunch of grapes with vine leaves in a circular punch (mark 109 in Cape Silver by Welz). Schmidt arrived in the Cape from Strelitz, Germany, as a soldier in 1768. He worked as a sword cutler for the Dutch East India Company, and became a burgher and silversmith in 1779. He died in 1811 (Cape Silver by Welz, pg 139). He is described by David Heller (in his book History of Cape Silver) as the "greatest Cape silversmith". Heller goes so far to describe Schmidt as a "master craftsman, whose work can be compared to Paul Storr" (History of Cape Silver, pg 79).

A Georgian silver mote spoon, made by Philip Roker III in either 1766 or 1767. The mote spoon is the traditional shape, with a pierced bowl, tapered handle and diamond point finial, which is quite sharp. The piercing has a central starburst design, surrounded by symmetrical scrolls and holes. The spoon has a long drop, which is also pierced. The spoon has 2 hallmarks, a lion passant and makers mark P. ROKER, which was only used by Philip Roker III for 2 years, hence our ability to date the spoon so precisely. This is mark 3753 in Grimwade, who ascribes the mark to Philip Roker II (who died in 1757, so we assume Grimwade is incorrect. The Roker family were specialist spoonmakers, and have left behind some wonderful spoons. Mote spoons originated in the early 18th century, and were used to skim off floating particles of tea leaves and motes (tea dust) from a cup of tea (Newman, Illustrated Dictionary of Silverware, page 217). The long thin handle with sharpened point was used to clear the spout of a teapot (wh...

A fabulous pair of Scottish silver Hanoverian tablespoons, made in Edinburgh in 1753. The spoons have the traditional central rib, and double drop, the spoon bowls are oval in shape. These are quality spoons, around 75 grammes each.Both spoons are engraved with a family crest and motto, the crests are worn from polishing but still legible. The crest is a "broken terrestrial globe surmounted by a rainbow issueing out of clouds", above motto "AT SPES INFRACTA", translated "Yet my Hope is Unbroken". Above the globe is an Earls coronet, showing these spoons were owned by John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun, who lived between 1704 and 1781, he became Earl in 1742. The hallmarks on both spoons include makers mark K&D for Ker & Dempster, who worked between 1749 and 1771. This is followed by castle town mark, assay master mark HG for Hugh Gordon, who worked between 1744 and 1758. The 4th mark is date letter Y for 1753, this is slightly worn but still visible. Hopetoun House, which was completed by the 2nd Earl, still exi...

A lovely pair of Old English pattern tablespoons, with Leopards head family crest. The leopard is quite realistically engraved, and looks quite fierce. The hallmarks are excellent, as good as they could be, a journeyman's mark (the silversmith who made the spoons in the Wallis workshop) of 2 dots is also present. What is of interest about these hallmarks is the double cusp on the duty mark, to the right and base, this mark was only used between 6 July 1797 and 28 May 1798, 6 July being the date at which duty on silver was doubled from sixpence to one shilling. Jackson shows the 2 cusps to the left and base, this mark was never used on spoons, it was only used on tongs and knife blades that did not require the London town mark (Tony Dove, in an article entitled "The cusped duty used at the assay offices from 1797", in the Finial Vol. 14-04). 1797 was the first year a cusp was used, it was used again periodically when duty changed. The different assay offices applied the usage of cusps differently.

Beautiful set of ornate berryspoons, originally by Hester Bateman but converted during Victorian times. The conversion must have been done by a master craftsman as the quality is excellent. The gilt bowls display no wear, these spoons have not seen much use. Delightful crest of a dove holding an olive branch, so I suppose these are peace spoons! The hallmarks are very clear, including the Hester Bateman makers mark.

A Dutch silver ribber Hanoverian tablespoon, with interesting hallmarks. The spoon has a pronounced frontal rib, the drop is rounded with a V shaped decoration, and the spoon has original owners engraved initials Ch.I on the back of the spoon, unusually engraved upside down (not sure if this is a Dutch custom?). Six hallmarks are present, all clearly struck and very clear. They include makers mark AI around anchor in shaped punch for Anthonie Janse, who worked in Middelburg between 1787 and 1823 (sources Netherlands Responsibility Marks since 1797, mark 727, and Zeeuw Zilver). The next hallmark is date letter C for 1810, followed by Castle in oval punch, the townmark for Middelburg, only used between 1807 and 1812 during the Kingdom of Holland period (source Voet, Nederlandse Zilvermerken 1445-1951, page 16), so this is a rare townmark. The next hallmark is 10, the standard mark for silver 10 Penningen, also only used 1807-1812, Kingdom of Holland. The 5th mark is crown above co-joined TE, a tax free census m...

A set of 6 Irish Georgian silver Celtic Point teaspoons, with bright cut "Dublin Star" engraving. The oval shield under the star is vacant, this was originally intended for a family crest or owners initials. This engraving was popular in Ireland between 1790 and 1800, the bright cut glitters in candlelight, the Star pattern is unique to Irish silver. The 6 spoons were made by 4 different makers, and have very slight differences, but the hand engraving was done by the same hand, so we believe the set was assembled by the engraver. All 6 spoons are hallmarked with the Dublin Hibernia and Harp Crowned, no date letters are present (as is usual with Irish teaspoons of this period). 4 Makers marks can be identified, 2 J.S for John Shiels (1762-1790), one AM for Arthur Murphy, and one JB for John Bayly, the fifth mark is ?D, the last is not legible. Slight differences includethe shapes of the drops, and the bowl shapes, some move oval than others (very slight differences).

An interesting antique Ecclesiastical silver straining ladle, made in 1819 in Lemberg, then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire, but now known as Lviv, the largest city in Western Ukraine. The ladle has a round bowl, pierced with straining (or sifting) holes, arranged in the shape of a 6 petalled flower, the holes have different sizes, but all quite small - so we think it is more likely for straining than sifting. The plain handle is at 45 degrees from the bowl, the ladle overall is a good weight and very pleasing quality. The ladle has 3 clearly struck hallmarks on the back of the end of the handle. The first is the Austro-Hungarian standard mark used between 1807 and 1866, with 13 in circle for 13 loth (812 fineness), date 1819 around circle, and town mark D above the circle, with D identifying Lemberg / Lwow. The second mark TF co-joined in oval punch under D is the tax free mark (taxfreistempel) used from 1810 to denote "ecclesiastical silver not subject to delivery to the authority", so we assume the lad...

A rare Cape silver table fork in the Fiddle and Shell pattern, examples are known to exist but these are regarded as rare. The fork is single struck (pattern only on the front), the shell is a lovely feature. A similar example is depicted the book "Further Researches in Cape Silver" by David Heller, page 68, plate 13, also made by Lawrence Twentyman. English versions of this pattern are also scarce, mostly made in Scotland and Newcastle, London versions are rare (Pickford, Silver Flatware, page 114). The hallmarks are clear, makers mark LT and 4 pseudo hallmarks (crowned leopard's head town mark, date letter a, duty mark and lion passant), this is mark 135 in Cape Silver by Welz. Note: We have 2 other examples of this fork, S 11435 and S 11436.

An extremely rare Cape silver table fork in the Fiddle Thread without Shoulders pattern, this is only the 2nd time we have seen this pattern, see 2 dessert spoons S 11120 and S 11121 which we have already sold. David Heller, in his book History of Cape Silver Vol. 1, depicts a spoon in the same pattern (plate 50, page 124) and a similar 3 tined fork (Plate 61, page 146), these are the only examples we can find in the literature. The fork is double struck (pattern on both sides), and has a single thread, but notably without the usual shoulder where the bowl joins the handle. The fork also has a long drop, with an unusual curve, showing this fork was hand made. The fork is lovely quality, a pleasing weight, and is in excellent condition. The hallmarks are excellent, a variant of mark 138 in Cape Silver by Welz, Castle, date letter C, and Georgian duty mark, with makers mark LT, all well struck. We have 2 matching forks, S 11432 and S 11433. A close examination of all 3 forks shows slight differences to the dro...

An extremely rare Cape silver table fork in the Fiddle Thread without Shoulders pattern, this is only the 2nd time we have seen this pattern, see 2 dessert spoons S 11120 and S 11121 which we have already sold. David Heller, in his book History of Cape Silver Vol. 1, depicts a spoon in the same pattern (plate 50, page 124) and a similar 3 tined fork (Plate 61, page 146), these are the only examples we can find in the literature. The fork is double struck (pattern on both sides), and has a single thread, but notably without the usual shoulder where the bowl joins the handle. The fork also has a long drop, with an unusual curve, showing this fork was hand made. The fork is lovely quality, a pleasing weight, and is in excellent condition. The hallmarks are excellent, a variant of mark 138 in Cape Silver by Welz, Castle, date letter C, and Georgian duty mark, with makers mark LT, all well struck. We have 2 matching forks, S 11432 and S 11434. A close examination of all 3 forks shows slight differences to the dro...

A wonderful pair of Scottish Provincial silver toddy ladles, made in Aberdeen by William Jamieson. The ladles are Fiddle pattern, and both have a beautifully engraved family crest of a dog, the bright cut engraving is amongst the best we have seen on Scottish Provincial silver. The ladles are great quality. and are in excellent condition. Both ladles are clearly hallmarked WJ, A, B, D, WJ, makers mark WJ struck twice with ABD for Aberdeen in between. The 2 makers marks are struck with different punches, the second punch has an indent next to the J. Given the careful alignment and identical spacing between punches, we assume the hallmarks were part of a stub struck on a fly press. This same set of hallmarks, with the same indent, is depicted in the book Aberdeen Silver by Michael Wilson, page 66, bottom left under William Jamieson. Jamieson worked between 1809 and 1841, his company were prolific producers of silverware, based at 87 Broad street, Aberdeen. Jamieson took on at least 17 apprentices, his son Georg...

A rare Cape silver tablespoon by unknown maker M.I.V., with an exceptionally clear makers mark. The spoon is Fiddle pattern, in good condition but with wear to the tip from use, and no engraving. The makers mark M.I.V. is very well struck and clear, note the specific placing of the dots (first 2 higher than last). This is makers mark 178 in Cape Silver by Welz (page 158), where the specific placing of the dots is clearly illustrated. This mark is also recorded by Heller in Further Researches in Cape Silver Vol. 11, mark N.M.M 56, page 126, also with the unusually placed dots clearly illustrated. We have only seen one other example of Cape silver with this makers mark, a Cape silver sauce ladle that sold at Strauss in March 2011, Lot 146. Note - We have a second example of this spoon, with a slightly less clear makers mark, see S 11465.

A rare Cape silver table fork in the Fiddle and Shell pattern, examples are known to exist but these are regarded as rare. The fork is single struck (pattern only on the front), the shell is a lovely feature. A similar example is depicted the book "Further Researches in Cape Silver" by David Heller, page 68, plate 13, also made by Lawrence Twentyman. English versions of this pattern are also scarce, mostly made in Scotland and Newcastle, London versions are rare (Pickford, Silver Flatware, page 114). The hallmarks are clear, makers mark LT and 4 pseudo hallmarks (crowned leopard's head town mark, date letter a, duty mark and lion passant), this is mark 135 in Cape Silver by Welz. Note: We have 2 other examples of this fork, S 11435 and S 11437.

An extremely rare Cape silver table fork in the Fiddle Thread without Shoulders pattern, this is only the 2nd time we have seen this pattern, see 2 dessert spoons S 11120 and S 11121 which we have already sold. David Heller, in his book History of Cape Silver Vol. 1, depicts a spoon in the same pattern (plate 50, page 124) and a similar 3 tined fork (Plate 61, page 146), these are the only examples we can find in the literature. The fork is double struck (pattern on both sides), and has a single thread, but notably without the usual shoulder where the bowl joins the handle. The fork also has a long drop, with an unusual curve, showing this fork was hand made. The fork is lovely quality, a pleasing weight, and is in excellent condition. The hallmarks are excellent, a variant of mark 138 in Cape Silver by Welz, Castle, date letter C, and Georgian duty mark, with makers mark LT, all well struck. We have 2 matching forks, S 11433 and S 11434. A close examination of all 3 forks shows slight differences to the dro...