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Rare Cape Silver Teaspoons (2 available) - Thomas Lock Townsend, Masonic Hallmark
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Reference: S1781
Period: George III
Year: Circa 1815
Silversmith: Thomas Lock Townsend
Place: Cape
Price: $ 520.00
Weight: 30 grams
Dimensions: 14.0 cm
Condition: Excellent.
Description: A rare pair of Cape silver teaspoons in the Fiddle pattern, with excellent hallmarks. They include the rare Masonic "Square and Compasses" symbol, the single most identifiable symbol in Freemasonry. This hallmark is very well struck on both spoons. The other hallmarks include makers mark TT for Thomas Lock Townsend (struck twice), and pseudo Georgian duty mark (Kings head) - see Welz, Cape Silver, mark 126. Thomas Lock Townsend arrived in the Cape in 1815, the first of the English silversmiths to arrive. He was followed in 1819 by his half brother John Townsend, who joined him in a brief partnership between 1824 and 1825. Thomas Lock Townsend found business difficult in the Cape, he was declared insolvent in 1819, and when he died in 1849 left insufficient estate to cover his funeral costs. Besides being registered as Goldsmith and Jeweller, he practised as mechanical dentist, lodging house keeper, and had an equipment store and fitting out warehouse (Welz, pg 141)
We are selling these 2 spoons individually for R 4500 each to enable 2 different collectors to add this rare piece to their collections.
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Cape silver teaspoons - Thomas Townsend
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Cape silver masonic hallmarks - Thomas Townsend
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Cape silver teaspoons - back
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Cape silver teaspoon bowl - Fiddle pattern
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Cape silver Masonic hallmarks
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Cape silver teaspoons - scale
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