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.

A set of 12 Dutch silver cake forks, with a threaded border pattern, with the traditional thicker cake cutting tine. The forks are quite dainty, but still good quality, around 18 grammes each. All 12 forks are hallmarked with makers mark V.K. in horseshoe (or capital G), and the Dutch dagger used for small items of silver. Koninklijke Gerritsen & Van Kempen were based in the Dutch town of Zeist between 1924 and 1960, when they merged with Van Kempen & Begeer. Their head designer between 1934 and 1977 was Gustav Beran, a pupil of Josef Hoffman in Vienna (Art Nouveau & Art Deco Silver, Krekel-Aalberse, page 254).

An interesting Sampson Mordan antique silver bowl, with a Victorian silver half crown dated 1900 set into the bowl. The bowl is engraved "God Save The Queen, The Last Coinage of the Nineteenth Century". The bowl is good quality, the coin is very fine, protected by the rim on the base. The hallmarks are excellent, including Sampson Mordan makers mark. The bowl is also stamped "copyright" in small letters below the coin. Sampson Mordan are well known for their collectable novelty silver.

Unusual set of 6 Arts and Crafts coffee spoons, made by Liberty, each set with different semi precious stones - malachite, amethyst, sodalite, turquoise, garnet and a green stone we cannot identify. The spoons are still in their original box, showing they were retailed by Mappin and Webb, Regent St, London. The spoons were made the year after Liberty closed their Cymric business (1901 - 1926), which was a partnership with William Haseler. The hallmarks are very clear on all spoons.

A Cape silver sauce ladle in the Fiddle pattern, by Peter Clarke Daniel. The ladle has original owners engraved initials JEB, and has excellent hallmarks - makers mark PD, pseudo date letter B and pseudo duty mark with notable cusp (Welz mark 42, but struck in different order). Daniel was an Irish immigrant to the Cape, one of the original 1820 settlers. His father, who has the same name, was also a silversmith, he worked as a jeweller in Grahamstown.

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 very fine Maltese Basting spoon, of good gauge, with an unusually large and deep bowl. The spoon also has a deep lip and point. The hallmarks are clear, being 1855 with a small scratch through it (looks intentional?), the letter R (Maltese mark indicating Roman Fineness, 11 deniers) and the circular makers mark for Geraldo Pace (circular mark with small bird under PACE). A truly lovely spoon. Note - we previously incorrectly attributed this spoon to the Naudi family silversmiths.

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).

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 beautiful Gorham sterling silver Louis XIV pattern gilded sugar sifter spoon and matching ladle, retailed by Starr & Marcus of New York. 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 sifter spoon bowl is intricately pierced, clearly done by a master craftsman, one of the best we have seen. The design has 12 panels around the outside, each with a pierced starburst and V shaped flower, the centre has more starbursts and a pierced branch design, completed with pierced circles. The ladle (we assume for gravy) has a plain bowl, but with deep gold gilding (described as goldwash in the USA), both have original owners engraved initials Gothic S. The hallmarks are clear on both items, "Patent 1870, Sterling, and the Gorham lion, anchor and gothic G, along with retailers mark "Starr & Marcus". Gorham Corporation, which still exists today, was founded in 1831, they dominated the solid silver flatware m...

A rare Straight Tudor pattern sifter ladle, made by Chawner & Co, the leading flatware maker of Victorian England. The ladle is fabulous quality, and in excellent condition, without engraving. The piercing in the bowl is lovely, a central flower surrounded by scrolls, changing to leaves on the side. The Straight Tudor pattern is a Gothic Revival pattern, note the omission of 2 small scroll circular projections on each side of the stem, this differentiates it from the "Tudor" pattern. The sifter ladle is clearly hallmarked, it also carries the British Registry design number and date chart diamond, which rarely occurs on silver flatware - class I for metal, date letter v for 1850. The presence of the design mark indicates that 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, ...

An interesting 9 carat gold bar brooch, featuring a well modelled monkey sitting on bamboo, holding a stack of gold coins in his hand. The detail is lovely, the monkey's tail wraps around the bamboo. The brooch also has a gold safety chain with coat hanger hook, to prevent the brooch being lost. The brooch is clearly hallmarked "9Ct" for nine carat gold. This is a well made brooch with fine detail, the addition of the gold safety chain reminds us of gold brooches made in London in the first half of the 20th century. A monkey holding gold coins is considered by some as a lucky monkey, a symbol of prosperity and wealth.

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...

A set of 12 ribbed rat tail trefid teaspoons, reproductions of a 17th century style, these spoons have just reached the 100 year milestone so are now classified as antiques themselves. The spoons are in good condition, they do not appear to have seen much use. The spoons have no engraving. Reproductions of earlier styles was common in the early 20th century. All 12 spoons have clear hallmarks, including makers mark W.H.H for William Hair Haseler Ltd, who worked between 1882 and 1941. Haseler is remembered as the manufacturer for much of Liberty's Cymric silver and Tudric pewter, including pieces designed by Archibald Knox.