Burnell and Rowe

Description

This is a delightful Chinese Export Silver Mustard Pot from the late 19th or early 20th century. The mustard pot is diamond shaped with a bulbous body decorated on each side by a Chinese character. The hinged lid has a round ball finial and the base is supported on four small bun feet.

The mustard pot bears the mark of Zee Wo, a Shanghai retailer based at 370 Honan Road during this late 19th / early 20th century period. The Chinese character marks or chopmarks will most probably indicate who the individual maker was.

Chinese export silver was made from the late 18th century up until the 1930s and was intended for export to Western markets, hence the name. Originally the items were faithful copies of European pieces but as time passed more Oriental designs were introduced. There was no legal system of marking Chinese silver so it was left to the individual maker and retailer to mark them as they felt appropriate.

Condition is very good with only a little salt marking to the inside base and the superficial surface wear that has to be expected after over 100 years of use. The pot would most probably have originally had a glass liner but sadly this has gone astray or been broken over the course of time. Please make sure to view all the photographs.

The mustard pot is 5cm / 2ins wide, 4cm / 1.6ins deep and stands 4.5cm / 1.8ins high. It weighs in at a very respectable 30.5g / 1.1oz of solid silver.

Shipping in the UK is £6 by Royal Mail 1st Class Signed For Parcel Post.
Overseas customers, please ask us about shipping costs to your country before making a purchase.