A set of 4 Canadian silver teaspoons in the Fiddle pattern, made by John Ramage of Kingston, Ontario between 1851 and 1869. The spoons are quite large for teapoons, and a pleasing weight, around 18 grammes each. All 4 spoons have engraved original owners initials AW, in a beautiful flowing script, quite different to English engraving of the period, so distinctly Colonial. All 4 spoons are hallmarked with maker mark "J. Ramage" in rectangular punch, clear on one spoon, and some wear to the last few letters on the others. John Ramage Senior was a Scottish immigrant who arrived in Quebec in 1817 on the Prompt, he settled in Lanark County before moving to Edwardburg (source www.ramagefamilyhistory.com). Both John senior and his son (also John) were listed as "working silversmiths, jewellers, clockmakers and watchmakers" in Kingston, Ontario in 1857, at 63 Brock Street, before moving to Princess Street (source Langdon, Canadian Silversmiths 1700-1900, page 118).

A beautiful sterling silver master butter knife in the Moresque pattern, made by Wendt of Boston and retailed by Starr & Marcus of 5th Avenue, New York. The butter knife has a twist handle (at 90 degrees to the flat handle version), the blade is engraved with bright cut foliage on one side, on the reverse it is engraved "Christmas 02" (for 1902). It also has engraved initial P in fancy script, the original owner. The Moresque pattern was designed by Bernhard Beiderhase for John Wendt, it was patented in 1873 during the "Persian Revival" period (other patterns include Arabesque, Hinostanee and Persian). It has been described as "one of the nicer American exotic patterns, arguably the most complex". John Wendt has been described as "one of the most important American silversmiths of the mid 19th century", his work is highly collectable. He was a German immigrant, he emigrated to the USA in 1848. The hallmarks are clear, "STARR & MARCUS, STERLING, PATENT". Wendt worked as a manufacturer for prestigious retailers...

An engraved Victorian silver castletop cigarette case, featuring Edinburgh Castle. The case is rectangular, and is clearly hallmarked. The engraving is well done and in excellent condition, with clear details, scottish thistles surround the castle. The case also has original owners initials AP in script.

A beautiful sterling silver antique cheese scoop, in the Indian pattern, made by Whiting of New York and retailed by N. Harding & Co. of Boston (Haverhill). The scoop bowl is gold washed, and has lovely bright cut engraving (flowers with pattern) on the back of the bowl. The scoop has 2 engraved initials on the front, an ornate P and M, and on the back is engraved "Fathers Day 02" (for 1902). This spoon is described as a cheese scoop in the pattern books, but the extreme foldover of the bowl shows it was designed for Stilton cheese. The hallmarks are clear, including Whiting lion makers mark, "PAT 1874 STERLING", retailers mark N Harding & Co (slightly worn but still visible), and additional marks 3 and A near the makers mark. We can date this scoop between 1874 when the pattern was designed by Charles Osborne, and 1889 which is the year Harding & Co closed (operated 1851-1889). We really like this cheese scoop.The Whiting Manufacturing Company was established in 1866, and was a supplier to Tiffany. They wer...

A beautiful pair of sterling silver fruit serving spoons, made by Bailey & Co of Philadelphia between 1871 and 1878. The spoons have bright cut bowls which are gold washed, the handles also have a lovely design with palm leaves, we have not been able to identify the pattern (assistance welcome). The spoons have engraved owners initials MII in fancy script. The hallmarks are clear on both spoons, "STERLING PAT 1871, 1A, BAILEY & Co." The bowls also have an additional hallmark, an ornate shield with fancy design. Bailey & Co worked between 1832 and 1878 when they became Bailey, Banks & Biddle, they still exist today. Joseph & Charles Bailey are remembered for excellent quality, these spoons are no exception. The firm claimed the distinction of being the first to introduce the sterling 925 British standard to the American public, at the time the standard was 900 (Rainwater, Encyclopedia of American Silver Manufacturers, page 33).

A mixed set of antique American sterling silver, comprising of an olive spoon and olive fork. The spoon is Towle Empire pattern, patent 1894, with gold wash pierced bowl, this is a beautiful spoon. It was designed by George P Tilton, and has no monogramme. The fork is by Clark & Biddle, made between 1866 and 1870, it has a twisted stem, 3 tines with barbs, and intricate engraving. The fork has engraved owners initial P in fancy script, and is also engraved on the back "Thanksgiving 02", we assume 1902. Both items are clearly hallmarked.

A Gorham sterling silver Louis XIV pattern pickle knife, with a pair of matching master salt spoons. The pattern is striking, described as "17 th Century Magnificence", named after King Louis Quatorze of France, who "made his reign famous for it's splendour". The pickle knife (similar to an English butter knife) is bright cut and gilded, with no monogramme, which the 2 saltspoons have goldwash bowls and engraved initials G. The hallmarks are clear on all 3 items, "Patent 1870, Sterling, and the Gorham lion, anchor and gothic G. Gorham Corporation, which still exists today, was founded in 1831, they dominated the solid silver flatware market in the USA for 125 years (Gorham Silver, page 50). Note -We also have a Gorham Louis XIV sifter ladle and suace ladle S 11476.

A set of 6 Victorian silver trefid teaspoons, with lovely bright cut engraving. The spoons have the traditional trefid shape, with 2 deep notches, and a wide flattened terminal. The spoons are engraved in Victorian style, with scrolls and and leaves, zig zags and hatching, the quality of the engraving is superb, these spoons will sparkle in candlelight. The spoons are in excellent condition, and appear to never have been used, a pity with such lovely spoons. The original box reads " Forsyth & Co, Jewellers, Pietermaritzburg, Natal", the box itself is excellent quality, silk and velvet interior. The hallmarks on a 6 spoons are excellent. Forsyth & Co still exists today, they date back to before 1897, as an advert from 1897 has been found (see photograph). Hilliard & Thomason were manufacturing silversmiths who worked from Spencer Street, Birmingham, between 1847 and 1902. They exhibited at the Great Exhibition on 1851.

A pair of Victorian silver vine leaf wine labels, pierced for Rum and Gin. The labels are single leaf symmetrical, with a textured front, these are die stamped labels. The hallmarks are clear on both labels.

A beautiful matching antique Swedish silver souvenir spoon and fork, with exquisite detail, featuring Stockholms Slott. Both are gilded, and have the Swedish Coat of Arms with red and blue enamel, on an ornate pedestal, with gadrooned stem, and rectangular feature at the base, The spoon bowl features "Stockholms Slott", with fabulous detail, palace, equestrian statue, trees, streetlights and pedestrians. Both are clearly hallmarked, C.G. Hallberg, triple crown national mark, Stockholm town mark and date letters T6 and U6 for 1896 and 1897. The original box, in full working order, reads "H.K.H. Kronprinsens Hof Juvelerare, C.G. Hallberg, Stockholm, Goteborg". Without doubt one of the best quality and nicest souvenir sets we have seen.

A set of fabulous quality antique silver teaspoons, in the Fiddle and Thread pattern, made by the leading silversmiths of the Victorian era. The teaspoons are quite large and a very pleasing weight, over 30 grammes each, they have engraved initials AMI. The hallmarks are excellent on all 6 teaspoons.

An exceptionally large Danish silver serving spoon, in the Old Danish pattern (Dobbelt riflet), wih matching large bowl. The spoon is single struck, the pattern has a reeded edge, and the handle is fluted. This type of extremely large serving spoon is unique to Denmark, very suitable for serving a generous portion. The hallmarks include the Danish 3 towers mark (well struck but date letter not visible), makers mark VELTZIN, and an additional mark which reads 13L4G, which we think is a standard mark for 13 loth silver (812 purity). The makers mark Veltzin appears rare, we have not been able to trace this maker, or confirm the meaning of the 13L4G mark, all assistance welcome. We have sold a similar spoon S1293, and have a similar example S 11029. Note - a collector has now shared images of his spoon, very similar to this spoon, also hallmarked Veltzin but alongside makers mark CW - we agree with the collector that Veltzin is probably a retailers mark.

An interesting solid gold bar brooch, with a natural gold nugget, set with a round brilliant diamond. The nugget is a beautiful shape and size, approximately 5 grams, with tiny quartz crystals confirming it is natural. The diamond is approximately .20 carats, 0.4 mm diameter, is a round brilliant cut, colour G/H and clarity VS. The bar brooch itself is 15 carat gold, it is hallmarked 15C, and has makers mark CM. This brooch is accompanied by a valuation certificate from The Gem Lab Gemmological Services, confirming replacement value of R 20800, and confirming the diamond and gold details above.

A "New Nautilus" novelty silver sugar sifter, complete with patent and registration number. The bowl of the sifter is a nautilus shell, the top edge of the shell has 28 pierced leaf shaped sifter holes, the shell is realistically modeled. The handle is joined to the shell at right angles, to allow ease of use during sifting. The handle has an interesting unknown pattern, not found in the book " Silver Flatware" by Pickford, it appears to be a variant of Albert pattern, and is single struck. The hallmarks are clear, the handle also has a registration number indicating the design was registered. The shell has a patent number, PAT 17124, so this design was patented as well, quite unusual for silver flatware. The nautilus is a living fossil, dating back 500 million years, it is a cephalopod named after Sailor in Greek. Nautilus shell cups decorated in silver and gold became popular in the 16th century, the nautilus became popular again in Victorian times, first as spoon warmers, this sifter design is late Victori...

A rare pair of Tudor pattern sauce ladles, made by Chawner & Co, the leading flatware maker of Victorian England. The ladles are fabulous quality, and in excellent condition, they could not be better. 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. Both ladles are clearly hallmarked, they also carry the British Registry design number and date chart diamond, which rarely occurs on silver flatware - class I for metal, date letter v for 1850, and R 14 indicating 14 August. The presence of the design mark indicates the Chawner protected 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 sh...

An interesting gold miner or prospectors gold brooch, consisting of a gold spade, pick and rope, with 3 real 24 carat gold nuggets - the largest central on the handles, with smaller nuggets on the spade and pick end. The spade blade has stamped "rivets", the gold safety chain and safety pin is attached to the spade blaed. The brooch pin is also gold, but a redder colour compared to the bright gold nuggets, spade and pick. The brooch has no hallmarks, we believe the spade, pick and rope to be 18 carat, the nuggets pure 24 carat and possibly the pin is 9 carat. These brooches became popular at the turn of the 20th century, worn to advertise success in the goldfields.

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 fabulous Victorian Scottish silver Rams Head snuff mull cover, decorated with an impressive faceted semi precious stone and 6 hardstone cabochons. The cover is dome shaped with a circular base, and is embossed and engraved with Scottish thistles and Celtic knot designs. The central diamond shaped crystal has a diameter of 3.7 cm, this is a large stone. The six hardstone cabochons are 2.2 cm in diameter, colours range from green to red to brown, we imagine Scottish granite. The interior is gilded, and the hallmarks are perfectly preserved. This is the largest and most impressive Rams head snuff mull cover we have seen, we have seen similar smaller examples. The cover would have been mounted on a ceremonial Rams head, used to dispense snuff at a table - we prefer this cover without the original rams head! Mackay & Chisholm were a prestigious Scottish firm, the worked between 1834 and 1941 from Princes Street, Edinburgh.

A rare set of 6 Victorian Military Fiddle Thread antique silver table forks, each over 90 grammes in weight, they have a lovely feel in the hand. The forks have an engraved family crest of a lion rampant, this is crisp and very clear. The hallmarks on all 6 forks are excellent, and include makers marks GA (George Adams) for Chawner & Co, the most important firm of silver spoon and fork manufacturers in Victorian England, known for excellent quality (these fine forks are no exception), See Culme, Gold & Silversmiths, page 82. Military Fiddle and Thread pattern has scrolls instead of shoulders, as do all military variants, this pattern is described by Pickford (Silver Flatware pg 117) as "a scarce variant of the Fiddle Thread pattern, building a service would be difficult".

A pair of antique sterling silver handled sewing scissors, with the sterling handles modeled as 2 snakes with their tails wrapped around their bodies, and steel blades protruding from open mouth. The steel blades have an indent, very similar to that seen on grape scissors, so these could be grape scissors. The steel blades have makers mark triple S around cross. The scissors have 2 sets of hallmarks on both handles, the first original makers mark (eagle device and N), we believe these are Hanau, Germany, possibly Neresheimer, founded 1893. The second set are London import marks for 1900, with F import mark, and importer mark SBL for Samuel Boyce Landeck. Landeck of Campden Town was a known importer of foreign silver from 1891, he died in 1907, his son Boaz Moses Landeck continued with the business.