Delightful Gorham Sterling nursery rhyme plate, with embossed pictures depicting scenes from nursery rhymes around the rim. Rhymes depicted include "the cat and the fiddle", "the cow jumped over the moon", "sing a song of sixpence", "4 and 20 blackbirds" and some we haven't identified (teapot, cock, spoon and bowl, teacup and rose, wolf). 31 pictures are present, with 9 different designs, repeated in a random fashion. The plate is very good quality, the embossing is superb, with very fine detail. The plate is engraved on the back "J.M.W., X mas 1885" - indicating it was a Christmas present. The initials "W.W.S." in different script are below, we assume a later owner. The hallmarks are very clear, the Gorham trademarks (Lion, Anchor and capital G), along with "Sterling" and "L93" (L is the yearmark for 1879). This beautiful antique silver Gorham plate would make an ideal Christening present. This plate is depicted in the book "Gorham Silver 1831-1981", by Charles Carpenter, pg 212, which is shown with a matchi...

A Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers antique silver spoon, with the Company armorial as a cast silver finial. The spoon is a good weight and quality, it also has a rat-tail bowl. The cast finial has lovely detail, the back has a vacant shield cartouche intended for engraved initials. The company is one of the Livery companies of the city of London, ranked 41st in order of precedence, it was founded in 1375 and received Royal Charter in 1571. The company motto, "Join Loyalty & Liberty" was created by past Master John Wilkes in 1774, John Wilkes is remembered as the founder of "Freedom of the Press", his statue is in Fetter Lane. He was also Lord Mayor of London, his "I love liberty" slogan on silver spoon picture-backs are highly collectible. The armorial has 2 pairs of compasses over a globe, under 2 roses and a scallop shell, with a demi savage holding a spear, supported by 2 naked boys, one holding a female figure, the other a square - all this detail is clearly visible. The hallmarks are very clear,...

A pair of antique Irish silver sugar tongs in the Fiddle pattern, with engraved initials MMG. The tongs are a good weight and in excellent condition. The hallmarks are very clear, they could not be better. Philip Weekes worked between 1816 and 1848, he was apprenticed to Samuel Neville. The makers mark has a dot between the letters, this mark does not appear in Irish Silver by Bennett.

A Danish silver Skonvirke (Arts & Crafts) cream ladle, made by the respected Danish silversmith Evald Nielsen in 1924. The ladle is the No 4 pattern, which has organic flowing scrolls in relief, so quite pleasing to hold. The ladle is hand hammered, with the planish marks visible in the bowl and the stem. The ladle has a flat circular bowl with a narrow lip, about 0.7 cm deep. The ladle is 830 grade silver, as is usual for Danish silver. The well struck hallmarks include "Evald Nielsen" in an attractive script, with "No 4" indicating pattern, date letter "ANNO 1924", the letter "S" surrounded by dots in shaped punch for silver, and "830" in oval punch surrounded by dots for grade of silver. Evald Nielsen worked between 1905 and 1958 from Copenhagen, he designed all his own designs (as opposed to his contemporary Georg Jensen). He won numerous awards internationally, and his silver can be seen in numerous museums, including the Metropolitan in New York, V&A in London, and Kunstmuseum in Denmark. Nielsen produ...

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...

A lovely set of 6 single struck Kings pattern with shoulders (Kings Front French Shoulder, Pickford, Silver Flatware, pg 123) Newcastle silver teaspoons. The spoons are the larger size teaspoons, and have a good gauge, over 20 grammes each, these are pleasing quality. Single struck flatware is usually found in Scotland, it is unusual in England, where the patterns were usually double struck (pattern on both sides) The hallmarks on all 6 teaspoons are excellent, and include makers mark TS for Thomas Sewell I, who worked between 1846 and 1875. They include an additional 5 hallmarks, uncrowned Victoria duty mark, lion passant, three castle town mark, leopards head uncrowned, and date letter I in circular punch for 1847. It is clear the date letter and makers mark were struck individually, the other 4 marks struck together in a stub (the date letter punch overlaps slightly on 2 spoons). These are interesting hallmarks, the uncrowned leopards head was only used for 5 years between 1846 and 1850, when it reverted b...

A lovely set of 12 rat-tail trefid silver teaspoons and matching sugartongs, also with rat-tail, well preserved in original box. This set is antique, being over 100 years old, but was made as a replica of an earlier style (circa 1680). In late Victorian and Edwardian times good quality replicas of earlier styles were popular, this set is also very good quality, and is suitable for use. The hallmarks on all 13 pieces are excellent. James Dixon & Sons is a well known firm, first established in 1806 and still in business today.They employed over 600 people during Victorian times (Culme, Directory of Gold & Silversmiths).

Set of 3 gilt spoons (caddy, sugar sifter and jam) with exquisite decoration in the style of the Aesthetic Movement. This movement flourished in the period 1865 - 1885, after the International Exhibition in London led to a an interest in Japanese decorative arts. The decoration consists of abstract patterns of bamboos, birds and butterflies. Original silk lined box, and very clear hallmarks.

A pair of antique silver whisky noggins, also called Chota Pegs. The noggins are the traditional conical shape, with cut glass star base, glass handle and silver pouring collar and lid with thumb piece. The hallmarks are clear on both the rim and the lid of both noggins. Whisky noggins were popular in Edwardian times, they contain a 1 gill (30 ml) measure, so a generous double tot, and were made to be taken to bed. They were also popular amongst British expats in India during the Raj period, where they were called "Chota Peg", or little drink, also "go to bed" drink. Joshua and John Maxfield, founded in 1855 in Sheffield, were celebrated at the Jewellers Exhibition of 1913 for "the extent and variety of novelties which they have placed on the market" Culme, Gold & Silversmiths pg 319. They had a showroom in London's Regent Street so must have been a prestigious firm.

An interesting and beautiful sterling silver small cup, this is a Greek museum replica of the Vapheio Cup, from the Mycenaean period, showing Minoan Bull Leapers (very detailed) being gored by bulls, and a bull captured in a net. The mug shaped cup has a spool handle, securely fastened with 3 pins. The original pair of 2 gold cups have 2 different designs, this design is known as the "Violent Cup", as bulls are stampeded into nets, one escapes, shoving a catcher aside. They are known as "the most perfect works of Mycenean or Minoan Art to have survived" - source Wikipedia. The base is clearly hallmarked "Hand made 925", and the handle is marked "Made in Greece 925". A copy of this cup appeared in the 'Game of Thrones" series, with Tyrion Lannister using it to drink wine. Replicas of Vapheio cups can be found by a variety of Greek, German and English makers. many are brass or silver plate, some are sterling silver, and different sizes exist.

An interesting Georgian silver caddy spoon, with an embossed and engraved bowl, and a bifurcated handle. This is an unusual design, we have not seen anything similar in the literature, including the book "Caddy Spoons an Illustrated Guide" by John Norie. The bowl is circular, with a central embossed shell, with 2 embossed scrolls on either side, and a central engraved oval, finely engraved with flowers, with additional engraving completing the design The top half of the bowl also has additional foliage around the edge. The bifurcated handle has a central shield shaped cartouche for initials or family crest, this has not been engraved, but the rest of the handle has attractive engraving. The spoon is unfortunately quite light and thinly made, and given the bifurcated handle is prone to damage - note our condition report of a previous repair and 2 splits to the bowl. The hallmarks are clear, makers mark JL in rectangle without pellet for John Lawrence & Co, this mark was used between 1813 and 1818, note the mak...

A Cape silver butter knife in the Fiddle pattern, with scimitar shaped blade, and reeded border across the top of the blade. The handle has original owners engraved initials in a fancy script, possibly JCLDLV. The knife has clear Cape silver hallmarks, makers mark W.M for William Moore, and Cape silver stub mark with 4 pseudo hallmarks, lion passant, date letter A, duty mark and leopard's head town mark - see our Cape Stub article in our articles section.

A rare Cape silver tablespoon in the Old English thread pattern, we have only noted 2 examples of Cape silver in this pattern in the body of literature. The spoon is the usual Old English shape, but with a double thread around the edge, this is double struck (occurs on the front and back of the spoon). The spoon is engraved with original owners initials IM in script. The spoon is hallmarked with makers mark IC, the mark is slightly blurred, we assume the punch was worn when it was struck. The spoon is also hallmarked with the "Cape Stub", 4 pseudo - English hallmarks (lion passant, date letter, duty mark and leopard's head) struck mechanically in a fly press (see article on Cape Stub in "The Finial, 2007, and in the articles tab above), these marks have some wear but are still clearly visible. We believe this spoon was made by hand, you can see differences in how the thread has been applied. Please note our condition report, this spoon has been well used. David Heller, in his book "History of Cape Silver Vol....

A rare Cape silver tablespoon by unknown maker M.I.V., with a good 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 fairly well struck but slightly worn, 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. Note - We have a second example of this spoon, with a slightly clearer makers mark, see S 11464.

A pair of full figural Indian sterling silver souvenir spoons, with bowls decorated with Mudlavia, Kramer, Indiana. The spoons are a good weight at 30 grammes each, and very pleasing quality, The detail on these spoons is excellent, the Indian is carrying a bow and tomahawk, his feathered headrest hangs to his waist. The bowls feature the Mudlavia Hotel in Kramer, Indiana, once again the detail is excellent (one spoon bowl is very clear, the second has some wear and is not as crisp). Both spoons are clearly hallmarked "Sterling", they also have a Dutch duty mark V in shaped shield, this mark was used 1906-1953 on imported silver, so at some stage these spoons were imported into the Netherlands. No makers mark is present. The Mudlavia Hotel was a spa built in 1890 by Harry Kramer to use the natural spring water, it drew visitors from around the world until it burnt down in 1920. Today the springs are owned by Perrier for use in their bottled water. The book "Collectable Souvenir Spoons" by Wayne Bednersh desc...

A rare Tudor pattern butter knife, made by Chawner & Co, the leading flatware maker of Victorian England. The butter knife is fabulous quality, and is in excellent condition, it has original owners engraved initials GML. The Tudor pattern is a Gothic Revival pattern, it has 2 small scroll circular projections on each side of the stem, this differentiates it from the "Straight Tudor" pattern. The butter knife is clearly hallmarked, it also has a star journeyman's mark. In addition, it also carries the British Registry design number and date chart diamond, which rarely occurs on silver flatware. The presence of the design mark indicates that Chawner registered the design to protect it being copied. Tudor is described by Pickford (Silver Flatware page 150) as "a rare Chawner & Co pattern registered August 14th 1850, along with Straight Tudor, it appears in the Chawner Pattern book (page 218). Odd pieces may on rare occasions, be found, but building a service would be extremely difficult". The Tudor pattern is s...

A rare and beautiful Tiffany sterling silver melon (or pickle) fork, in the Greek Handle or Greek pattern, made between 1870 and 1891. The pattern has a geometric 3 petalled flower on wavy stalk, the flowers increase in size up the handle. The bowl is long and elegant, with shaped centre tine, the handle is tubular, increasing in diameter towards the top, the end is monogrammed with script initials MEL, we assume the original owner. The fork is clearly hallmarked "Tiffany & Co M Sterling 332", the M was used by Tiffany between 1870 and 1891, to denote Edward C Moore, who headed Tiffany's silver operations. The number 332 is a pattern number. This Greek Handle pattern is extremely rare, and does not feature in many of the Tiffany flatware guides. We have noted 2 other examples, one on the Peter Cameron website, his examples include pickle forks, melon forks and fruit knives, the forks with gilded bowls, he describes this as Greek pattern, dated 1870-1875. The second example is on the Antique Cupboard website, ...

An early Georg Jensen silver spoon in the Continental pattern, also called Antik pattern, made in 1927, The spoon is a lovely size and shape, and is is hand hammered, both on the back and front of the spoon bowl and the front of the handle. This is technically a "gumbo" spoon, a large spoon for Louisiana Gumbo, but is more suitable as a small serving spoon. The hallmarks are very clear, including the GJ over 830S makers and standard mark used between 1915-1930, and assay masters mark for Christian Heise (1904-1932). The third mark is the Danish three towers mark above 27 for 1927. The pattern is well described on the Scandinavian design website Fjorn (www.fjorn.com), as "Designed in 1906 by Georg Jensen, the Continental cutlery pattern was the first major cutlery range to emerge from the fledgling silversmithy that was established two years earlier in 1904. In designing Continental, Georg Jensen was inspired by the forms of traditional and centuries-old Nordic tools and implements. The lightly hammered surfac...

A Dutch Arts & Crafts silver bowl, with hand hammered (planished) texture, which creates a very appealing finish. The bowl is circular, on a small base, with decorative band 2/3rd's of the way up (slightly wider here). The handles are circular, with tapered thumbpiece on top, with turn up at end for good grip. The top of the handles are planished as well. The bowl is very similar in shape and style to English porringers, but could also be used as a sugar bowl. The hallmarks are clear, Minerva mark with clear C for The Hague, Lion 835 standard mark, date letter Y for 1933 and makers mark V over moon for Zilverfabriek Voorschoten. This mark was used by Koninklijke Van Kempen & Begeer, founded in 1764 and still in existence today. This bowl would make an ideal Christening present.

A fabulous sterling silver letter opener, with an impressive cast silver Leopard's head, the detail is superb. The letter blade has well struck large hallmarks along the front, these form part of the decoration. The quality is excellent, it has a lovely feel in the hand, and when you leave it on your desk you cannot resist picking it up. The animal may not be a leopard, my wife suggested Jaguar, please see the photograph's.