Burnell and Rowe

Description

Here we have a fine quality George I Britannia Silver Table Spoon in the Hanoverian with Rat Tail pattern. The spoon has the initials M C engraved on the underside of the stem along with a stamp of the name CROWE, presumably the family surname.

Britannia Silver is a higher grade than Sterling Silver being 958/1000 as against 925/1000 and was the English legal standard from 1697 to 1720, when Sterling once again became the English standard.

The table spoon is made in London and dates to 1719, the last year of the compulsory Britannia standard. Unfortunately the makers' mark is too distorted to decipher, as is often the case on spoons of this period when the stems were reshaped after being marked at the assay office.

Condition is very good for its age with just some wear to the tip of the spoon and the superficial surface wear that has to be expected after over 300 years of good service. Please make sure to view all the photographs.

The table spoon is 20.3cm / 8ins long and weighs in at 44.5g / 1.57oz of solid high grade Britannia Silver.

As mentioned above, hallmarks on spoons of this period are often distorted. This is because the process of hallmarking caused spreading in the stem and the silversmith then had to reshape the stem when it came back from the assay office, which distorted the marks. Three of the marks on this spoon are easy to decipher, there is the Britannia mark for 958/1000 grade silver, the lion's head assay mark for London Britannia Silver and the date letter D for 1719. Unfortunately the makers' mark, whilst present, cannot be deciphered.

Shipping in the UK is £10 by Royal Mail Special Delivery, which includes cover for the value of the spoon.
Overseas customers, please ask us about shipping costs to your country before making a purchase.