A rare and interesting 17th century silver spice box/ vinaigrette, with a polished oval agate panel set in the lid. The box is beautifully engraved, particularly the base which has 2 birds reaching for a hanging bundle of fruit. The box in rectangular with cut corners (so octagonal in shape), the raised lid is cushion shaped, with a mounted oval of polished orange agate. The box has a protruding thumb piece for easy opening, and stand-away (protruding). The engraving is mostly scrolling foliage, with a border of acanthus leaves, the base and hinge have a diaper border. The rim has 2 sets of engraving, the first reads "EF 1711" on the front side panel, the next reads "WC 1714" on the 2 side panels. These were engraved by different hands, the second WC 1714 is much cruder than the first, which is quite charming, with cross hatching inside the letters and "double engraved" numbers, the first could have been professionally engraved, the second probably done by the new owner. The interior of the box is interestin...

An antique sterling silver bowl or ash tray, set in the centre with a copper 1 penny Zuid Afrik. Republiek coin dated 1898. The bowl is engraved "Kruger Coinage", still clearly visible but worn from polishing. This penny was part of the first Kruger coinage, initiated in 1892 by President Paul Kruger. The bowl is dated 1900, which co-incides with the Anglo Boer War, we are not sure of the significance. The hallmarks are visible but slightly worn from polishing. The coin is in good condition, it has been protected by the raised silver rim.

A collection of 10 sterling silver rifle shooting trophy and Boer War souvenir spoons. Five spoons have enamel finials, 8 spoons are shooting trophies and 2 spoons are Boer War. The spoons include: 1. P.E.R.C. (Port Elizabeth Rifle Club), E.F. Wilson, 103, enamel shooting range (round medallion), Birmingham 1928, Birmingham Medallion Company, gilded 2. P.E.R.C. (Port Elizabeth Rifle Club), E.F. Wilson, 1927, 100, enamel bulls eye, gilded, crossed rifles, Birmingham 1925, Birmingham Medallion Company 3. & 4. - Toll Gate Miniature Rifle Club, enamel finials with twisted stems, Birmingham 1912, William James Dingley, both engraved "Won by" 5. Man at Arms Competition, Lovely shooting soldier handle, Birmingham 1912, William James Dingley, engraved "Won by EF WILSON PET GRC, score 98, 18 Jan 1913 6. & 7. - Rifle Club, crossed rifles, Birmingham 1909 and 1911, Elkington & Co, engraved "D Coy CP Rifles and A Coy PWCRCPR", nice quality 8. Bloemfontein Rifle Club (English and Afrikaans), City armorial, gilded, B...

A rare antique sterling silver 1/3 gill tot measure, in the traditional shape of a tankard. The tankard is baluster in shape, the handle just large enough for a finger. The tankard rim is raised, we assume the base indicates the measure point. The base has a design number 74642, the London hallmarks on the side are very clear. The tankard measures 42 millilitres, so a generous double tot, this is 1/3 of a gill using the traditional measures. Tot measures such as this are commonly found in brass, copper, pewter and other base metals, occasionally found in silver plate, solid silver versions such as this one are rare. The gill measure dates back to the 14 Century in Great Britain, 1 gill is a quarter of a pint, 1/6 gill was the traditional single shot whisky measure. Horace Woodward & Co operated between 1875 and 1916.

A Redhill & District Football League silver, gold and enamel fob medallion for the year 1925. The medallion has a central gold panel with 3 footballers and football, with goals in the background, marked with registration number 401749, so this design was protected. This is surrounded with a blue enamel ring with the writing, and decorative silver scrolls and suspension ring surrounding. The original suspension ring is also hallmarked, this is ideal for wear as a pendant. The hallmarks are very clear. The Redhill and District Football League still exists, is a regional English football league formed in 1897. It comprises teams from Surrey, Kent, Greater London and Sussex. It currently has four divisions, the highest of which, the Premier Division, is situated at the 14th level of the English football league system source Wikipedia). I am sure we can be confident that they no longer award such beautiful medallions!

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).

A rare set of Old English Military Thread and Shell pattern (also called Military Shell) tableforks and dessertspoons (3 of each). These are good quality, the forks around 90 grammes each and the spoons over 60. All 6 have an engraved family crest, a raised lion facing right between 2 horns. The pattern has the regular Thread and Shell pattern, double struck (on both sides), but with scrolls instead of shoulders, as with all Military variants (Pickford, Silver Flatware, page 117). Pickford describes this pattern as "a rare pattern illustrated in the Chawner & Co Pattern book, Appendix page 218", where the Chawner book shows this pattern, termed as "Military Shell". Pickford did not illustrate a photographic example of this pattern , a further indication of its rarity. The hallmarks on all 6 items are very clear, makers mark GA for George Adams of Chawner & Co, and London date letter P for 1870. In addition, all pieces carry additional journeyman's marks (Y, K, 3 petal flower, O), so the particular silversmit...

A Gold and enamel sweetheart brooch for the Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own), set on a gold safety pin for attachment. The brooch has the regimental badge, complete with battle honours "ALBUHERA" in white enamel, "ICH DIEN" and "MIDDLESEX REGT" in blue enamel, and the Royal coronet of the Duke of Cambridge in red enamel. The badge also has gold Prince of Wales plumes, and the cypher of Prince George, Duke of Cambridge. The brooch has no hallmarks, but most brooches of this period were 15 Carat gold. The regiment existed between 1881 and 1966, but has battle honours from Albuhera (Peninsular War, 16 May 1811), their nickname was the "Die Hards". They fought during the Anglo Boer War (Relief of Ladysmith), First World War and Second World War, when they were a machine gun regiment. We believe this brooch to be either Boer War or WWI period.

A collection of 10 sterling silver Royal souvenir spoons. Six spoons have enamel finials, 1 has enamel bowl as well. Six spoons are English, 3 are Canadian and 1 is Dutch. 4 spoons commemorate coronations. The spoons include: 1. Edward VII in commemoration of the Coronation, Westminster Abbey 1902, Birmingham 1901, Henry Griffiths & Sons, Abbey in bowl 2. Edward VII, Birmingham 1901, S Blanckensee & Sons, Edward in bowl, pierced cast Edward handle, gilded, a lovely spoon 3. Victoria Queen and Empress, London 1898, Saunders & Shepherd, imported F mark, gilded 4. King George V, Mary Queen Consort, Crowned at Westminster June 22 1911, Birmingham 1910, BH Joseph & Co, coronation chair in cast handle 5. Elizabeth II, Crowned 1953, Birmingham 1952, Mappin & Webb, coronation hallmark, "Fire Triumphs over Materials" for JK Smit & Sons, diamond drilling company 6. Royal visit to South Africa, King George VI and Queen Mother, South African coat of arms, Dutch dagger hallmark and makers mark for Van Kempen 7. Roy...

An Edwardian silver and enamel novelty vesta case, of circular form with hinged flip top lid and striker built into the base. The vesta has an applied enamel in silver rope border, featuring a pack of 8 English foxhounds, very attractively modelled with lovely colours. Vesta cases (also called matchsafes) were used to store vestas (early matches before safety matches were invested), they were very popular between 1890 and 1910.

An interesting silver gilt Georgian vinaigrette, in the shape of a purse or handbag, the body decorated with chased 3 leaf device, which has been described as a trefoil design in the literature. The shape is lovely, very pleasing to hold, and with the texture has good grip. The quality is excellent, certainly made by a master craftsman. The base has a leaf design around oval eye. The lid is also beautifully decorated, a central flower on finely engraved cross-hatch surrounded by pattern border, and the side of the lid has a fruiting vine border, very delicately chased. The vinaigrette has 2 eyelets which holds the original chain, each chain link is also decorated with a bar pattern. The pierced grille has a foliate design, also engraved, both hinges are perfect. The interior gilding is also perfect. The vinaigrette has clear hallmarks, the lid has Georgian duty mark, very clear makers mark L&Co which is struck upside-down, and lion passant. The base has anchor town mark, partially worn makers mark and a very ...

A fine and heavy cast silver commemorative caddy spoon made to celebrate the investiture of the Prince of Wales in 1969. The caddy spoon bowl is made up of the 3 Prince of Wales feathers, joined to the handle with a Royal crown and the motto "ICH DIEN", translated "I Serve", the handle has a Welsh dragon. The bowl is quite deep, the feathers have been shaped, the detail of the feathers is also very fine. The spoon is fully hallmarked with clear hallmarks, including makers mark G&Co Ld. for Garrards, the Crown Jewellers (founded in 1722, it retained the Royal Warrant until 2007). The back of the caddy spoon is also marked "Garrard & Co Ltd 112 Regent St W". Another example of this caddy spoon is shown in the book "The Story of the Caddy Spoon 1775-2015" produced by the Society of Caddy Spoon Collectors, page 63. It also was part of the John Norie Collection, Part II, lot 384.

A pair of rare Old English Feather Edge and Cartouche silver tablespoons, made by William Pinder in 1771. The spoons are lovely quality and in excellent condition, we really like these spoons. The cartouche has been chased and engraved by hand, you can see small differences between the 2, notably the size and orientation of the scroll underneath. The cartouches are engraved with a family crest, a Griffin's head erased, this is the family crest of the Nalder Family (Fairbairns crests). Whilst Old English Feather Edge is a common pattern, the addition of the Cartouche, first produced around 1770 by Thomas Northcote, is rare (Silver Flatware, Ian Pickford, page 105). The pattern was revived late 19th century by Carrington, who called it Carrington Shield. The hallmarks are bottom marked, and include clear makers mark WP, with the W and P co-joined for William Pinder, who worked from Bunhill road between 1770 and 1784 (Grimwade page 624). The crowned leopards head and lion passant are partially worn but still cle...

A rare Victorian silver Old English Military Thread and Shell pattern soup ladle, of exceptional weight and quality. The pattern has the regular Thread and Shell pattern, double struck (on both sides), but with scrolls instead of shoulders, as with all Military variants (Pickford, Silver Flatware, page 117). The ladle has an interesting engraved family crest, a collared lion between 2 horns. The hallmarks are very clear, including makers mark GA (George Adams, who took over the Chawner business in 1840), and also includes 2 journeyman's marks S and N (the silversmiths who made the ladle in the Chawner & Co workshop). Ian Pickford, in the book Silver Flatware, describes Old English Military Thread and Shell as "a rare pattern, illustrated in the Chawner & Co. Pattern book(appendix pg 218). Any services and pieces are rare" - page 107. Chawner & Co were the most important firm of silver spoon manufacturers in Victorian England (John Culme, Directory of Gold & Silversmiths, page 82).

A private die silver Victorian dessert fork, made by Elkington & Co in 1898. The fork is an excellent gauge, over 60 grammes, a good quality fork. It is double struck with a variant of Kings pattern, but with an ornate scrolling design below the raised family crest. The crest is a griffin holding a branch with leaves in its beak, described as "Griffin's head erased argent holding in the baek a sprig or rose branch proper", this is the Watson family crest. This branch of the Watson family came from Silsden, Yorkshire, descendants of Rowland Watson, Silsden Moor late 16th century. The hallmarks are very clear. Private die flatware was individually commissioned with the family crest die-stamped rather than engraved on a stock pattern (Pickford, Silver Flatware, page 173. Most 19th century private die patterns were supplied through Hunt & Roskell to members of the peerage and other wealthy clients. Pickford describes these as "fascinating, but obviously impossible to build into services". Note - this fork is acco...

An interesting antique cast silver wine label, pierced for SHERRY, made by the Barnard family of silversmiths. This design is called the "Five Barred Gate", the 5 bars are surrounded by grapes, vines and tendrils. This label is of particular interest as it is upside-down, the central vine leaf is usually on top, here it is underneath. The label is quite balanced so it is not easy to see it is upside-down, so an easy mistake for the engraver who did the piercing and applied the chain to make. The five barred gate design was first produced circa 1820 by Emes & Barnard, it remained popular for 30 years, and was copied by a number of other silversmiths, including Reily & Storer (Wine Labels 1730-2003, page 35, Fig 37, where a Port label is displayed the correct way up, also page 156, F Champagne). A number of other examples, all the correct way up, can be seen on the Steppes Hill website (www.steppeshillfarmantiques.com), all by the Barnards, dating between 1823 and 1830. Another version of this label is depicted...

An Edwardian silver pocket stamp case, with a spring loaded interior for holding stamps in place. The case is rectangular, with an engine turned design with vacant circular cartouche for initials or family crest, and ring attachment for attachment to an Albert chain. The interior is gilded, the stamp compartment is also engine turned. The case, lid and stamp compartment are all hallmarked. Saunders & Shepherd are a well known firm, first established in 1869 by Cornelius Saunders and Frank Shepherd.

A collection of 10 sterling silver souvenir spoons, all from a different British town. The spoons were made in Birmingham, London, Chester and Sheffield, with dates ranging from 1893 to 1919. All 10 spoons have clear hallmarks. The 10 include: 1. Ripon, Birmingham 1912, Levi & Salaman, crest in bowl 2. Bideford, Chester 1906, John Millward Banks with flower trademark, engraved Bediiforde 1577 Sicillun Comvne De 3. Brighton, Birmingham 1918, Levi & Salaman, engraved In Deo Fidemus 4. Scarborough, Birmingham 1905, Levi & Salaman 5. Canterbury, Birmingham 1901, Turnbull Brothers, Cathedral in bowl 6. Oxford, Birmingham 1911, gilded armorial in bowl 7. Manchester Ship Canal, Sheffield 1893, Henry Wigfull, gilded armorial in bowl, cast handle with Navigation & Commerce 8. Unknown town, London 1899, Saunders & Shepherd, cast floral handle, lovely quality 9. Unknown town, Birmingham 1908, Joseph Cook & Sons 10. Oxford University, Sheffield 1919, Joseph Rodgers Note- The earlier spoons pre 1900 are notic...

An interesting and rare silver wine label, in Art Nouveau style. The label is rectangular with canted corners, and has been pierced BRANDY in Art Nouveau style, in a font that closely resembles the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Glasgow school. The hallmarks are struck on the front of the label, and are very clear, including the W&H in flag punch, they worked between 1884 and 1960, when they were incorporated into Mappin & Webb. British Art Nouveau silver wine labels are rare, the book "Wine Labels 1730-2003" by John Salter, states that "perhaps surprisingly, there seems to have been no record of British Art Nouveau labels", further noting the "only Art Nouveau labels known are American and Continental". Note: we have a matching label for WHISKEY S1850.

A set of 6 sterling silver grapefruit spoons, with pointed bowls for easy access to the fruit. The spoons have a threaded border pattern with pointed terminals, sometimes referred to as French pattern. The spoons are very pleasing quality and weight, they have a solid feel in the hand, as is often the case with pre-war silver. All 6 spoons are clearly hallmarked with Sheffield hallmarks for 1939 and makers mark EV for Viners Limited, started by Adolphe Viner in 1901, the E refers to his son Emile. Viners was a leading 20th century British cutlery brand, known for good quality, they were acquired by Oneida in 2005. These spoons also have an additional set of 3 hallmarks, smaller but clearly struck, these are Irish import marks that were struck on foreign silver. These marks include the Dublin assay office Boujet mark, .925 sterling standard mark, and Dublin date letter X for 1939, meaning these spoons were exported to Ireland as soon as they were made. The Boujet mark is a stylized representation of a medieval...