AMERICAN SILVER TEA SERVICE Tiffany & Co., New York, NY Late Nineteenth Century 177.2 Troy Ounces
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Seeking Quality Consignments for our Fall Decorative Arts Auction Now accepting consignments of fine silver, art glass, sculpture and estate jewelry For more information, please call 800-872-6467 ext. 444,
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Volume XXXIX, Number 4, 2006
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4 LETTER FROM THE SILVER DESK
6 THE SILVER LINING Letters from Our Readers
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16
EXHIBITIONS & EVENTS
10 SILVER MARKET MONITOR Auction Previews and Reviews
Sculpted in Silver: Gorham Martelé Earns its Due as Art by Sara Campbell Drury
12 SOUVENIR SPOON COLLECTING Minihaha Falls by Robert Wilhelm
20 Old vs. New Wallace Irian Pattern
22 San Francisco Coin Silver: The Yerba Buena/Janin Pattern by Pansylea Howard Willburn
38 BOOK REVIEW Tiffany at the World’s Columbian Exposition by William P. Hood
44 SILVER WORLD PERSONALITIES A conversation with Eward Munvees, Jr.
28 The Evolution of the Asparagus Server in Europe and America by William P. Hood Jr., John R. Olson, and Charles S. Curb
Gorham Martelé – Compote 9954 , completed March 7, 1898, unrecorded chaser, .950 standard, from The Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection, Catalogue number 6. Photo courtesy of the New Orleans Museum of Art.
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JULY/AUGUST 2006
Baltimore Summer Antiques Show August 31 – September 3, 20 0 6 Labor Day Weekend B A LT I M O R E C O N V E N T I O N C E N T E R Downtown at the Inner Harbor
26TH YEAR WITH 55O INTERNATIONAL DEALERS INCLUDING A 60-DEALER ANTIQUARIAN BOOK FAIR SILVER • ASIAN ART & ANTIQUES • FURNITURE • PORCELAIN • CERAMICS & POTTERY OBJETS D’ART • ANTIQUE & FINE JEWELRY • PAINTINGS TEXTILES • WATCHES • CLOCKS • SCULPTURE BRONZES • ORIENTAL CARPETS • ART GLASS • OTHER ANTIQU ITIES & 20TH CENTURY DESIGN
F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N 5 6 1 - 8 2 2 - 5 4 4 0 W W W. B A LT I M O R E S U M M E R A N T I Q U E S . C O M
Letter from the Desk Dear Readers, Thank you for your kind remarks about our stewardship of Silver Magazine. As we gain in skill and knowledge, we hope that we are also building a good relationship with you - our readers, our advertisers and our friends. We listen to you. Silver Magazine has heard from you about the addition of shorter informational pieces. All of the reader comments received to date have been very positive. Several of you have specifically noted our new feature, Old vs. New as a favorite. A reader writes, “I just subscribed to your magazine and have already benefited from your article on International‘s Frontenac. I had purchased a spoon because I liked the pattern, but didn't know if I had a true antique or not until your article verified that I did.” We’ve also heard positive comments on the New Orleans Hurricane Katrina article. Thank you and please continue to contact us with your comments. Silverplate round Covered Casserole with Grecian
To keep Silver Magazine a “must-read” for silver enthusiasts, we appeal to relief motif by Meridan-Britannia Company, circa those of you who have previously written articles for Silver Magazine, as 1900-1917. well as new writers for submission of short and diverse articles on silver. Since our readership covers diverse fields of interest within silver and varying levels of silver awareness, we actively seek such diversity in the articles and coverage we print. If you have not yet written for Silver Magazine, why not share your knowledge of silver? We embrace and need our scholars and curatorial voices, but we welcome beginners and those with narrow fields of expertise to also submit. Information for prospective writers can be obtained by contacting us at editorial@silvermag.com. Looking back at the honey pot I shared on this page last issue, I heard from Dr. William Hood who wrote to say, “The marks on your silver bee skeep are probably those of the W. W. Harrison & Co., Montomery Works, Sheffield, England. The EP indicates electroplate.” Thomas Mullins of New Hampshire replied, “I believe the maker’s mark shown to be that used in the later part of the nineteenth century by William Wheatcroft Harrison and Company of Pepper Alley, Fargate, Sheffield, England.” Thus we have consensus on Harrison as the manufacturer of the mystery bee skeep, thank you! I looked long and hard to find the piece for this month’s letter. I really like its form and design lines! What do you think? Enjoy this issue and do let us hear from you. Dean six Editor-in-chief Silver Magazine
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JULY/AUGUST 2006
PUBLISHER Page/Frederiksen Publishing Company EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dean Six ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jason Price COPY EDITOR/PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Amy Fisher DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING & SALES April Walker ART DIRECTOR Clark Design EDITOR EMERITUS Connie McNally CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Sandy Lynch and Carla Zarse FEATURED ARTICLE CONTRIBUTORS Dale E. Bennett, Charles S. Curb, Sarah Campbell Drury, William P. Hood, Jr., Robert M. Wilhelm, and Pansylea Howard Willburn Post Office Box 10246, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404 Telephone: 866-841-0112 Toll-free, www.silvermag.com POSTMASTER: Send address changes to SILVER MAGAZINE, P.O. Box 10246, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404 Copyright Page/Frederiksen Publishing Company, 2006 HOW TO CONTACT US Silver Magazine, P.O. Box 10246, Greensboro, NC 27404 www.silvermag.com EDITORIAL To contribute an article, contact Silver Magazine at: 866-841-0112, editorial@silvermag.com SUBSCRIPTION For subscription inquiries: 866-841-0112 sales@silvermag.com ADVERTISING To find out about advertising: 866-841-0112 sales@silvermag.com RETAIL If you would like to carry Silver Magazine in your shop: 866-841-0112, sales@silvermag.com BULK REPRINTS If you would like to order article reprints: 866-841-0112, silver@silvermag.com Silver Magazine (ISSN 1074-2107) is published bimonthly by Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co., P.O. Box 10246, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. Periodicals postage is paid at Greensboro, North Carolina and additional mailing offices. Š 2006 Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Silver Magazine is protected through trademark registration in the United States and in the foreign countries where Silver Magazine circulates. A one-year subscription is $40.00 for US; Canada rates $50.00 and other foreign subscriptions $55.00 per year (US funds). You may telephone Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co. at 866-841-0112 for customer service, subscriptions, or other inquiries. Editorial and other contributions are welcome, but such submissions may be published at Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co.’s sole discretion. Please write for Guidelines and include a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Any submission to Silver Magazine, including without limitation any and all text, copy, drawings, photos, or other content or artwork, is an express acceptance of each and all of the terms and conditions contained in the Guidelines, including without limitation a representation and warranty that a submission in no way violates, plagiarizes, or infringes upon the rights of any third party, that it contains no libelous or otherwise unlawful material, that the author is at least 18 years old, and that it may be reasonably edited, published, reproduced, and distributed with no additional approval, license, other agreement, or compensation required. Opinions expressed in any article in or other submission to Silver Magazine reflect the views of the author(s) only, and do not express or signify agreement with the views of Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co. Page/Frederiksen Publishing Co. does not represent the accuracy or reliability of any advice, opinion, statement, or other information published or distributed by any other person or entity.
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The
Lining
Letters from Our Readers A response for Serge Matveyuk’s Hallmark question in the last issue:
A response for Giorgio Busetto’s Gorham Teaspoon question in the last issue:
Dear Serge: A dear friend gave me some advice some years ago when I first became interested in antique silver. He told me to first look at the form, then the decoration, how it was made, then the marks. It should all go together. In this case, I peaked at the hallmarks as they were the focus of your inquiry. The key there was the 13 generally found in German and Austria-Hungary hallmarks in the 18th & 19th centuries. The 13 meaning 13 lothige or .8125 silver, pure refined silver being 16 lothige. The form of the cup is interesting but does not conform to older pieces but the decoration is somewhat a throwback to earlier times. To make a long story short, the Sotheby’s Directory of Silver 1600 – 1940, by Vanessa Brett (published 1986) page 51, item 1, seems to hold part of the answer. The item is a silvergilt cup, Nuremburg, c. 1590 with cover and foot. Remove the cover and foot and for all practical purposes you have your cup. The design on your cup was somewhat stylized by the silversmith. I theorize that the cup was made in Austria sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century, most likely before WWI. This theory is based on the marks on the bottom of the cup. The mark with the 13 also has a star, used more in Austrian than German marks. Also, a mark with 13, star, and a four legged animal appears in Gyongyos mid 19th century. The “T” mark is similar to types of “T” found in the region, but do not match either. I could find no marks that matched any of the marks on the cup, but did find marks that are close enough to be similar to older Austrian-Hungarian and other European marks. My conclusion is that the cup was made by Austrian craftsmen for people that wanted silver that looked old but did not want to pay antique prices. I would think that the silver is probably .8125 fine. Gilbert R. Mesec Hague, VA
There are two different types of marks pictured on the fiddle-end teaspoon submitted by reader Giorgio Busetto. The retailer for the spoon was the firm of A. D. Norton and is represented as an incuse mark. The manufacturer of the spoon was the Gorham Company, and is represented by their manufacturer’s mark. The Gorham mark pictured on the spoon, with the lion facing right, was not in use until after 1865 (Rainwater and Redfield’s Encyclopedia of American Silver Manufacturers), long after the Goshen, Connecticut silversmith A. D. Norton was active. So additional research needs to be done to determine where the retail location(s) for the A. D. Norton firm were. An excellent reference source is the book Manufacturers’ Marks on American Coin Silver by John R. McGrew, Argyros Publications, Hanover, Pennsylvania, 2004. Richard Weiss Stone Harbor, NJ
Unknown Manufacturer’s Mark I have a ring with this mark on it, and I would like to know who made it. The marks on the inside of the ring are exactly as I drew them. The arrows are engraved in the silver and point to the “U.”
Tim Coulombe East Aurora, NY
Silver Magazine reserves the right to edit letters for content and length. Please include your full name and address when writing to us (via the post or email). Photographs accompanying reader questions must be high-resolution digital images of at least 300 dpi. Include appropriate measurements, such as overall length, handle length, blade width and length, bowl diameter, etc.
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SILVER MAGAZINE
JULY/AUGUST 2006
7
Exhibitions
&
Events
EXHIBITIONS The Gilbert Collection Trust Bejewelled by Tiffany, 1837-1987 June 24, 2006 through November 26, 2006 Somerset House Strand, London 020 7420 9400 www.gilbert-collection.org.uk Bejewelled by Tiffany, 1837-1987 is the most thorough collection of Tiffany jewelry to be on exhibit in Great Britain’s history. On display will be over 180 pieces selected from the Tiffany archives and private collections. The exhibit will expose England to more than 150 years of Tiffany’s history in the jewelry business. Historical documentation and the history of Tiffany & Co., including items never before seen on display will be represented.
Replacements, LTD. The Silver Service from the USS North Carolina Through April 1, 2007 1089 Knox Road McLeansville, NC (800) 737-5223 www.replacements.com Over 100 pieces of sterling silver hollowware commissioned for the Battleship USS North Carolina, including a magnificent punch bowl with matching candelabra, a 7 piece tea service, and a 24 piece dessert set will be on display in the Replacements, LTD. Museum through April 2007. This service was
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created in 1907 by Dominick & Haff Silver Company and was previously on loan to the Cameron Museum in Raleigh, NC.
The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture Northwest Coast Silver Bracelets Beginning May 2006 University of Washington Campus 17th Avenue NE and NE 45th Street Seattle, WA (206) 543-5590 www.washington.edu/burkemuseum The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture in Seattle, Washington, recently received a very unique collection of 30 Northwest Coast silver bracelets. Collected by Delbert L. Brink in the 1970s and 80s, the bracelets were generously donated to the Burke Museum by his wife, Ruth Brink. The Native American silver bracelets date to
the late nineteenth century, except for one contemporary bracelet; a piece made by Ron Wilson Gitsgah in 1971, at the start of the Native American contemporary art movement. This new collection triples the size of the Burke Museum’s silver bracelet collection. The Northwest Coast silver bracelets will be on display for the first time at the Burke Museum in May 2006.
The Newark Museum Objects of Desire: 500 Years of Jewelry Through February 18, 2007 49 Washington Street Newark, NJ (973) 569-6550 www.newarkmuseum.org Although not primarily a silver exhibit, this wonderful collection of jewelry is a testament to the history of jewelry design from 1500 to present day. Examples of Egyptian scarabs to Georg Jensen will be on display as well as many items from the museum’s permanent collection.
SILVER MAGAZINE
will also be on display; most notably the silver service presented to Commodore Matthew Perry in 1855, recognizing his role in opening US trade relations with Japan. The exhibit will also include examples of colonial era silver made by Newport silversmiths including Samuel Vernon, Jonathan Otis, Thomas Arnold, and William S. Nichols.
Newport Historical Society Form, Functions and Finery: Silver from 300 Years of Newport History Through December 23, 2006 82 Touro Street Newport, RI 02840 (401) 846-0813 www.newporthistorical.org
Held at the Newport Historical Society’s Museum of Newport History at Brick Market, the exhibit features objects of historical significance from the society’s collection. Highlights include The Rochambeau spoon, which was given to Lt. Governor Jabez Bowen by the French general in 1780, and the Ida Lewis teapot, given to the lighthouse keeper in 1881 for having saved two members of the 1st Regiment of Artillery at Fort Adams from drowning. Important commemorative and presentation pieces
JULY/AUGUST 2006
EVENTS The Newark Museum Seminar - Objects of Desire, 500 Years of Jewelry Monday, July 10, 2007, 10:30 am – 4:00 pm 49 Washington Street Newark, NJ (973) 569-6550 www.newarkmuseum.org
On July 10, 2006, there will be an all day symposium on the subject of America’s passion for jewelry and the jewelers that make it. Guest speakers include Janet Zapata, jewelry historian and independent curator; Yvonne
Markowitz, Curator of Egyptian Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Jeannine Falino, independent curator and former Curator of Decorative Arts, Boston; as well as Ulysses Dietz, Curator of Decorative Arts for the Newark Museum. This educational seminar is co-sponsored by the Society of Jewelry Historians and is priced $45 for the entire day ($35 for members) or $25 for a morning or afternoon session.
Sotheby’s Institute of ArtLondon Silver Studies - English Silver from 1500 to the Present Monday, July 17 through Thursday, July 20, 2006 30 Bedford Square Bloomsbury, London 44 (0) 22 7462 3232 www.sothebysinstitute.com Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London is hosting a four day course focusing on the styles, techniques and function of English silver from 1500 to current day. The course will feature a daily morning lecture on the history of silver, followed by afternoon visits to Goldsmith Hall, London’s center for hallmarking. At the Hall, participants will experience handling various silver pieces of the Hall’s amazing collection of silver. By the end of the course, participants will have a better understanding of English silver including current market value and the resale experience at auctions and through various dealers. All lectures will take place at the Institute’s location at 30 Bedford Square, Bloomsbury.
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Market Monitor Bonhams Fine European and American Furniture, Decorative Arts and Silver– Sale #13841 San Francisco, CA May 21, 2006
Lot #0241 - Tennessee coin silver mint julep, marked “S. Simpson” and “1857”. Estimate: $1,000 - $2,000, realized $6,500.
Providence, 1893. Estimate $9,00012,000, realized $14,400.
Lot #0725 - Charleston coin silver pap boat, marked “J. Ewan” (John Ewan, working 1823-1852). Estimate: $1,000 $2,000, realized $1,600
Lot #24
Christie’s Silver and Objects of Vertu, Sale 1773 New York, Rockefeller Plaza April 26, 2006
Lot #4291 Lot #4291 - A Victorian silver novelty figural caster. Estimate: $2,500 - 3,500, realized $2,390. Lot #4294 - A pair of George V silver gilt two-light candelabra after the antique Crichton Brothers, London, 1910. Estimate: $3,000 - 5,000, realized $4,780.
Brunk Auctions The Collection of Dr. & Mrs. Benjamin Caldwell Jr. Asheville, NC 28802 May 20-21, 2006 Lot #0097 - Tennessee coin silver cream pitcher, round shortened pitcher form, C-scroll handle, conforming stepped base with rope border, marked “Campbell & Donigan” with two elephants (John Campbell & George Donigan), inscribed “D.C.A. & M.A. to Castor, 1855. Estimate: $4,000 - $8,000, realized $20,000. 10
Lot #17 - A pair of Danish silver candelabra from the family of Georg Jensen, designed by Georg Jensen, Copenhagen, 1919. Estimate $80,000-120,000, realized $240,000. Lot #73 - French silver gilt dinner set by Puiforcat, Paris circa 1930. Estimate $40,000-60,000, realized $108,000. Lot #156 - A pair of George IV silver wine coolers, mark of Matthew Bolton, Birmingham, 1927. Estimate $20,00030,000, realized $72,000.
Fine American Furniture, Folk Art, Silver and Prints Sale 1663 May 23, 2006, New York, Rockefeller Plaza Lot #24 - A silver and copper vase, mark of Tiffany & Co., New York, 1893-1907. Estimate $10,000-20,000, realized $26,400. Lot #29 - A Silver–Gilt mounted cut glass water pitcher from the Columbian Exposition, mark of Gorham Mfg. Co.,
Kraus Antiques, Ltd. Ft. Pierce, Fl April 7, 2006 Lot #9 - A very heavy (6 troy oz.) cast berry spoon by Whiting with raised carnation handle. Estimate $650-950, realized $798. Lot #72 - A baby set by Webster featuring a baby climbing a ladder to the “Man in the Moon”. Estimate $35-75, realized $99.75.
John Moran Auctioneers Inc. Altedena, CA 91001 May 2, 2006 Lot #1117 - A set of Tiffany sterling flatware in the Olympian Pattern, consisting of 201 pieces with fitted wooden canteen sold for $25,990. The estimate for this lot was $9000-14000. Lot #1126 - A Shreve & Co. sterling cocktail shaker sold for $1,243. The estimate for this lot was $250-400. SILVER MAGAZINE
Lot #950
ONLINE AUCTION RESULTS
New Orleans Auction Gallery, Inc March 18-19, 2006 New Orleans, LA 70130 Featuring the Estate of Paul and Marcia Grubb- Tyler Texas
153 Piece Service for 12 in Tiffany’s Sterling Persian pattern. Sold May 10 for $29,500.
Lot #969 - A four piece repousee style sterling silver Tea/Coffee set by Tiffany & Co sold for $9,987.00. Estimate for this lot was $8000-12,000. Lot #1093 - A pair of sterling silver caviar dishes made by Fratelli Lisi and Figli, Florence Italy sold for $705.00.
Lot #1093
May 20-21, 2006 The Estate of Martha Ann and Ray Samuel Collection Lot #950 - American School (Early 20th Century) “Mississippi River Swimming Trophy” sold for $1,920. This pencil and watercolor drawing on paper executed by the silversmithing firm of Reed & Barton of Taunton, Massachusetts.
little bit of room here thand there >
JULY/AUGUST 2006
Gorham Martelé Sterling Tea Kettle with Stand. Sold May 13 for $7850.
Skinner Inc. Sale 2313-European Furniture & Decorative Arts Boston, MA 02116 May 20, 2006 Lot #704 - Gorham Hammered Sterling Aesthetic Movement Water Pitcher. Realized $3,525. Lot #728 - Whiting Manufacturing Company Sterling Trophy Tankard, New York, late 19th century. Realized $9,988.
English Sterling Card Box, Birmingham 1901. Sold May 12 for $2917.10. Vintage Gorham Sterling Strasbourg Asparagus Tongs. Sold May 7 for $1502.75. American Coin Silver Mug, ca 1830, marked “Hayden & Gregg.” Sold May 15 for $1076. Georg Jensen Sterling
SHOWS Baltimore Summer Antiques Show Baltimore Convention Center August 31 through September 3 (561) 822-5440 www.baltimoresummerantiques.com
Grape Shears, ca 1940. Sold May 3 for $691.
Newport Historical 6th Annual Antiques Show “A Celebration of Silver” Newport Historical Society September 15 & 16 Newport, RI (401) 846-0813 www.newporthistorical.org
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MINNEHAHA FALLS ON SOUVENIR SPOONS By Robert M. Wilhelm Fig 1 Minnehaha is the luckiest waterfall in the world; it has achieved more renown on a smaller capital of performance than any other I ever saw. Norway has a thousand nameless falls of greater height and beauty; Ithaca, New York, has two-score, only locally known; but this pretty, unpretending tumble of less than a hundred feet [actually only forty feet] is celebrated all over the world. — Bayard Taylor, New York Tribune (August 16, 1871) The Indians, in their exquisite appreciation of nature, have given this water-fall the appropriate name of MINNEHAHA, or Laughing Water, but the utilitarian, egotistical white man calls it Brown’s Falls. — Adolf Hoeffler, Harper’s New Monthly Magazine (July, 1853)
I
n 1822, Minnehaha Falls was “discovered” when William J. Snelling and Joseph R. Brown canoed from Fort Snelling, a couple of miles upstream on the Mississippi River. They paddled into the deep, wooded glen of a creek where they could hear the muffled rumble of the waterfalls in the distance. Following their visit in 1822, locals referred to these falls as Little Falls, to distinguish it from the grander St. Anthony Falls a few miles further up the Mississippi, and sometimes as Brown’s Falls, in honor of the discoverer. By 1849, the Falls were called “Minnehaha” which means “waterfalls” in the Dakota language.1 In 1851, Alexander Hesler took a daguerreotype of Minnehaha Falls (Fig. 1) which he sold to George Sumner, a neighbor of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who, in 1854, wrote his epic poem, The Song of Hiawatha.2 By the 1890s who in the world had not heard of Minnehaha Falls and could
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not repeat the well-known line from Longfellow’s poem — By the shore of Gitchie Gumee . . .? It is perhaps Longfellow’s epic poem which provided the inspiration for silversmiths, when, at the beginning of the souvenir spoon craze, spoons with Minnehaha Falls began to appear. Beginning in 1891, almost every silver company produced a souvenir spoon depicting Minnehaha Falls and continued production until the late 1950s. The image of Minnehaha Falls appears either on the handle or in the bowl where it is embossed, bright cut, acid Fig 2 etched, cast, painted or enameled. In the 1800s, Minnehaha Falls was the attraction that drew visitors to the city of Minneapolis. European and
American travelers, such as Taylor and Hoeffler, flocked to view the waterfalls and then wrote about it in their diaries and published journals. Painters, such as George Catlin, Robert S. Duncanson, Gilbert D. Munger, and Albert Bierstadt, depicted the waterfalls with their brilliant green growth framing the tumbling water and the sun shining through producing a beautiful iris. Photographers, such as Alexander Hesler, captured the laughing waters with amazing sensitivity and candor. Musicians composed countless waltzes, polkas and mazurkas in an attempt to capture the sounds of the playful waters. Dvorak found the waterfall bewitching; when visiting the waterfalls he scribbled a musical theme he heard in the falling waters on his starched shirt cuff and later composed a Sonatina for Violin and Piano which included the famous Indian Lament.3 Accounts of travelers, the pictures of painters, photographs and music instilled in visitors a desire to return home with a memento of their visit to Minnehaha Falls. Silver companies responded with exquisite images of the Minnehaha Falls on souvenir spoons to take with them. The first souvenir spoon (Figure 2) to honor Minnehaha Falls was made by SILVER MAGAZINE
Fig 5 Fig 3
Fig 6
Fig 4
Dominick & Haff (Figure 3) made this exquisite souvenir spoon which was sold exclusively by Eustis Bros. in Minneapolis: note the depiction of an Indian resting against a tree — almost lost to the naked eye among the foliage. Is this Minnehaha herself gazing at her Falls? Or, is it Hiawatha who — Striding over moor and meadow Through interminable forests . . . And he journeyed without resting Till he heard the cataract’s Laughter Heard the Falls of Minnehaha.
Durgin and patented on June 16, 1891 by John H. Bullard and William H. Bullard from St. Paul, MN. The patent claim stated: The leading features of our design consist of a fort and water-fall. . . The waterfall is fringed by vegetation on each side, with trees and other foliage beyond, the falls extending downward on the handle. The handle of this Durgin spoon provided an appropriate space to highlight the surrounding verdant vegetation and the height of the falls: note the trees above the falls and the upper bridge over the stream. Advertisements for this spoon quoted Longfellow’s poem. JULY/AUGUST 2006
The Gorham Mfg. Company produced its cast round bowl of Minnehaha Falls (Figure 4) with the designation “Minneapolis” inscribed in the bowl. Gorham’s advertisement of this spoon noted how Longfellow had “immortalized the falls of Minnehaha, which are visited annually by hundreds of tourists.” In this round bowl, the cataract appears less tall but it still “laughs” amid the abundant foliage. The literary accounts and the paintings of Minnehaha Falls focus on the beauty of the landscape and the glorious colors of the tumbling, laughing waters. Many of the enameled souvenir spoons
depicting Minnehaha Falls capture that image. This spoon (Figure 4) is marked “Sterling” (possibly made by Watson and Newell). On the handle are embossed images of the “Court House” and “Public Library” in Minneapolis. Above the word “Minneapolis” is a bag of “Flour” with stalks of grain emerging above, symbolizing Minneapolis as the greatest flour manufacturing in the country. In the bowl (Figure 6) within a scalloped frame is an exquisite enameled image of Minnehaha Falls whose banks are lush with trees and shrubbery. In the foreground is the famous Rustic Bridge constructed by Peter Winnen in 1900, photographed by every visitor, reproduced in millions of postcards and depicted on souvenir spoons.4 The Minnehaha theme, which Dvorak penned on his shirt sleeve, appeared in the second movement of his Sonatina where Minnehaha’s “wayward” alternation between “shade and sunshine” translates into alternating major and minor musical modes. In like manner, Minnehaha Falls inspired the craftsman of a unique souvenir spoon (Figure 6), 13
Fig 7
marked “Sterling. Copyrighted,” inscribed “Laughing Water” and viewed in an upright position. The image of Minnehaha Falls in this bowl recalls several lines of the poem, Minnehaha by Frances A. Shaw:5
FOOTNOTES
And I traced its silvery windings till its sparkling waters fell,
2. J. K. Hallberg, Minnehaha Creek: Living Waters. (Minneapolis: Cityscapes Publishing Company, 1995) 123. JT. Busch, C. Monkhouse, J.L. Whitmore, Currents of Change. Art and Life Along the Mississippi 1850-1861. (Minneapolis: The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 2004) 151152.
Bounding, leaping, gaily dancing o’er the rocks, adown a dell, Where a scene of wondrous beauty was unfolded to my eyes,
3. Hallberg, Minnehaha Creek, 128-129.
And this was Minnehaha, these were then the “laughing water,”
4. Peter Winnen owned a furniture store in St. Paul. He was an excellent cabinet maker. One of his wardrobes (now in the West Hennepin County Pioneer Museum in Long Lake, Minnesota) has a door panel on which Winnen carved the image of the Rustic Bridge.
That echoed once the laughter of the forest’s dark-eyed daughters.
5. F.A. Shaw was a local school teacher. His poem was published in a book called The Genius of the West, (1855).
That enthralled my raptured spirit in a wild and glad surprise . . .
this is all the image there is and i have emlarged it as much as i can
1. Mary Eastman, Dahcotah: or Life and Legend of the Sioux Around Fort Snelling. (New York, 1849; reprint, Afton, MN.: Afton Historical Press, 1995). Mary Eastman, (wife of the commandant at Fort Snelling, Captain Seth Eastman) noted that the “Indians call them (i.e. the falls) Minehah-hah or “laughing waters.” p. 2.
MELTD WN by Jason Price
bon-bon bowls that belonged to a distant Aunt Emma whose monogrammed bowl has been polished, dusted, haggled over, bought and sold? Scrapping the bowl concedes its worth. The process of determining worth can be telling as to where one stands in this conflict be-
ilver prices have peaked again, trigger-
S
1980. This is prompting dealers to take a
tween sentiment and economics. Long lines of
ing an interest in silver from those who
close look at their bins of grille forks and
teapot wielding, keepsake inheritors will parlay
would not ordinarily have an interest in sil-
weighted candlesticks. Good business
their family history into a house payment, much
ver. An instinctual defense mechanism is
practice dictates that this is the time to
to the pleasure of those who stand to benefit.
sparked in the spines of academics, histo-
cash in while guilty silver passion pushes
Buckets of loose metal that have taken space and
rians, collectors and admirers of this
in the opposite direction. Silver prices
caused years of complaint and contemplation can
precious metal. The forgotten soul of fine
have been so low for so long that the cur-
now be churned into real profits. The decision is
dining is again gleaming front and center,
rent prices seem a justification and re-
easy and without sorrow or remorse. A melting
while gambling brokers celebrate the rise
ward for patience. When sympathy en-
down to achieve immediacy - that’s more con-
of silver like fair weathered sports fans.
ters for the lonely “Castle Rose” luncheon
sistent with the times.
When the Hunt Brothers attempted
fork, might we consider the possibility
Once the check is received, the silver dealer
to corner the silver market in 1979, thou-
of a rebirth? This piece of “Castle Rose”
glances around at the empty bins and begins to
sands of valued pieces of silver were
might become something currently more
shop for replenishments. The check stays on their
melted down for weight value. The same
desirable: an Italian picture frame or a
desk for some time, it seems unfair to redeem, un-
is happening today, as the rise in price
Tiffany baby cup. Perhaps the dealer and
earned. The dealer’s base pleasure of making a
throws a new book of rules at the business
the fork can both benefit.
sale has been spoiled, exchanged for a quick thrill.
of silver.
What of preservation? Do we not
The price per troy ounce has exceeded
owe it to the designer, to the maker, to his-
$15.00 for the first time since December of
tory and to posterity to defend dented
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Something obvious yet unexplainable occurred to finalize an appreciation into a commodity.
SILVER MAGAZINE
Needs proofing by client
Fig. 1
Sculpted in Silver:
Fig. 1: This early coffee set with gourd-form pot is remarkable for its unparalleled reference to the Japonesque style that preceded Art Nouveau; the Japanese taste is particularly noticeable in the skin, which evokes the texture of melons. Coffee Set 9535 and Tray 9536 Set completed: November 2, 1897, tray: November 3, 1897. Unrecorded chaser. 925-standard silver The Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection, Catalogue no. 3
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In
2001, an exhibit of more than 150 pieces of Gorham Martelé silver debuted at the New Orleans Museum of Art. Collectors Robert and Jolie Shelton of Lafayette, Louisiana, loaned their beautiful Martelé pieces, amassed over a brief five year period, for the exhibit. Since that time, the collection has been touring museums around the country; introducing art lovers to the three-dimensional seduction of silver as sculpture, changing perceptions about Martelé as well as the market for it, and even surviving the wrath of Hurricane Katrina. Ironically, it was the pursuit of fine art that led to Jolie Shelton’s first and completely impromptu Martelé purchase: a pitcher of square, pyriform design with flowing asymmetrical lines, accented with four different types of flowers, and completed on December 31, 1898. (Its chaser remains unrecorded). "We were at an auction to buy an Impressionist painting, and this pitcher came up. Without even consulting my husband, I started bidding," Mrs. Shelton recalled. "I just knew that it was very beautiful, and I had to have it." The pitcher, which carried a pre-sale estimate of $1,500, was finally knocked down to Mrs. Shelton for $9,600. Fortunately, Robert Shelton was as enamored with the pitcher as his wife, and curious to find out what, exactly, they had acquired. Their quest to unearth information on Martelé proved frustrating at first, as so little information had been pubSILVER MAGAZINE
Gorham Martelé Earns Its Due as Art
—by Sarah Campbell Drury
lished on the topic. Eventually they learned that Martelé was Gorham’s luxury line of "art silver," wrought entirely by hand by its most talented silversmiths and decorated by its finest chasers under the direction of English-born chief designer, William C. Codman (1839-1921). The word Martelé was derived from the French verb, marteler, meaning "to hammer."1 Production began in 1897, but the line was officially introduced to the world at the Paris Exposition Universelle in 1900,2 where it earned Gorham the Grand Prix for metalwork and numerous gold medals.3 Specifically aimed at the top of the market, Martelé soon graced the tables of some of the most conspicuous consumers of the day, from publisher William Randolph Hearst to cosmetics magnate Helena Rubenstein. Production declined, however, as the Art Nouveau style that had become synonymous with Martelé began to fade in popularity. By the end of World War I, Martelé was being made only in response to special orders.4 As the Sheltons’ body of knowledge about Martelé aggressively grew, so did their collection – culled from auctions, dealers, and private sellers throughout the world. It all culminated in the exhibit, Magnificent, Marvelous Martelé: American Art Nouveau Silver, The Jolie and Robert Shelton Collection, and its landmark catalogue which included essays by Gorham scholar, Samuel J. Hough JULY/AUGUST 2006
and New Orleans Museum of Art Curator of Decorative Arts, John W. Keefe. The exhibit included the Shelton’s first pitcher, as well as their most
Fig. 2: This "love cup" was originally crafted with colored enameling including rose, crimson and white flowers, and a green dragon mask with amber eyes. However, the enameling cracked and fell off shortly after it was made, and the piece had to be rechased. Love Cup 2076 Completed April 9, 1900/May 7, 1900 George W. Sauthof (American, born German, 18521927), chaser John C. Richter (American, born Austria, 18611944), enameler .950-standard silver The Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection, Catalogue no. 31
impressive subsequent acquisitions: a very early Japanese-influenced threepiece coffee set and tray with surface texture emulating the skin of melons (Fig. 1); a pair of 5-light floral-and-leaf adorned candelabra, one of only eight pair ever produced in Martelé; and a love cup with sinuous mythological dragon-form handles, whose original colored enameling cracked, requiring rechasing before it could be sent in all-silver to the 1900 Paris Exposition (Fig. 2).5 There were also pieces from the famed 16 place dinner service ordered in 1917, by oil tycoon Harry Ford Sinclair, ranging from individual bouillon cup holders to a massive 32-inch diameter, 435 oz. gold gilded silver centerpiece, which is said to have cost Sinclair $1,000 a month to keep filled with fresh orchids. According to curators, the Sinclair service, showcased on a banquet table along with Lenox’s Mandarin china, has been one of the most popular points of the exhibit.6 The exhibit also contained a significant amount of "two-dimensional" material, including the original Gorham drawings of several pieces (such as the love cup with its ill-fated enameling, showing it in its intended full color), and various ephemera associated with the landmark 1900 Paris Exposition. With the coordination of the New Orleans Museum of Art, the exhibit traveled to the Columbus Museum of Art in
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Fig. 3: This wassail bowl’s three-handle form recalls the design of traditional English vessels used for toasting good luck and sound health. Each handle is chased with a different, symbolic plant: the olive branch, for peace; oak leaves and acorns for longevity; and ivy and berries for constancy. Wassail Bowl 9950 Completed April 12, 1898 Unrecorded chaser .950-standard silver The Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection, Catalogue no. 8
Columbus, Ga., the Munson-WilliamsProctor Art Institute in Utica, N.Y., the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Daytona Beach, Fla., the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum in Lafayette, La., and the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, Tenn. It is scheduled for display at the Florida International Museum in St. Petersburg, Fla., from October 2006 to January 2007. Mrs. Shelton noted that it was personally important to her for the exhibit to include so many stops in her native South, where Martelé was relatively unknown. The region’s poverty following the Civil War and Reconstruction may be one reason so few Martelé pieces found their way South; its buyers were far more likely to live on the East Coast, in the mansions of
18
Newport, New York and Connecticut. The exhibition’s sojourn through the South took a treacherous turn on August 29, 2005. Having just completed its run in Daytona Beach, the Shelton collection was housed in an off-site museum storage facility in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina slammed into the city. The Sheltons’ house in Lafayette, Louisiana, 135 miles from New Orleans, escaped damage. The couple, along with John Keefe, who had taken refuge at the couple’s home, could only sit anxiously by, watching the horrific images unfolding on television. For several days after the storm, the collection’s fate remained agonizingly uncertain. The Sheltons believe some Martelé went down with the Titanic and know that many pieces were melted down in the 1980's when the price of silver skyrocketed. But the idea that even more Martelé might be swept away or stolen due to Katrina was unbearable. They, like nearly everyone else, were barred from entering New Orleans; a friend was eventually able to reach the storage site and emailed photographs. The images showed that the storage facility had escaped flooding but that someone had tried to use an excavator to break
through the brick wall and barred windows. Thankfully, only the windows were broken and the metal bars had held. Three weeks after the hurricane, the Sheltons were finally able to re-enter New Orleans with an 18-wheel oil field truck to, in their words, "rescue the collection." During the period since the attempted break-in, wind-driven rain had soaked several of the 27 crates, but none of the carefully packed silver inside – and incredibly, none of the two-dimensional paper material – had been damaged. "We were so lucky – all we had were wet crates," said Mrs. Shelton. "We got it all out of there and took it to the Hilliard Museum in Lafayette. I unpacked the silver from its soggy packaging material, Robert cleaned the silver and John Keefe dried; it came out in perfect condition." While the collection’s brush with Katrina may have been its most dramatic, the most enduring encounters along the way have no doubt been with individual viewers and curators, as they begin to understand what Keefe has termed the "near-perfect union of craft, material and design" that is Martelé. "Before this exhibit, when everyone thought of Art Nouveau they thought of Tiffany," commented Keefe. "This collection and exhibition make it patently clear that Gorham Martelé was a significant American contribution to the Art Nouveau style." The appreciation stimulated by the exhibit and its catalogue has manifested itself most visibly in the market. "It has definitely put Martelé on the map, in a big way. The Sheltons created the market, and now they’re paying the price for it, literally," explained John Ward, assistant vice-president of the Silver Department at Sotheby’s in New York, where the Sheltons are regular purchasers - one of their most notable recent SILVER MAGAZINE
buys was a rectangular asparagus dish with pierced liner, estimated at $6,000$8,000, which they won amid fierce competition for $30,000. Ward said while the Sheltons and the top tier of other advanced Martelé collectors now focus their competitive
Fig. 4: Vase 1480 Completed December 23, 1899 Henry Brooks (American, born England, 1867-1940), chaser .950-standard silver The Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection, Catalogue no. 26
efforts mainly on unusual forms, an emerging "second generation of young, or newer, collectors" is adding strength to the market. Those buyers can still find some wonderful, if more common Martelé forms, such as bowls, bud vases, or pieces made during the latter years of production, for under $5,000 at auction. "The early pieces do show a level of JULY/AUGUST 2006
innovation, an energy, that tends to taper off as time goes on," noted Ward. "But later pieces [made after about 1905] can still be a bargain – especially when you consider they were still made and chased by hand, the hundreds of hours of work that went into each piece– and there was still some very interesting design work going on at that time." Quality of de- sign, including the level of relief in the chasing, and condition are primary factors in defining a good piece of Martelé. Of course, scarcity and provenance can add exponentially to its value. It is provenance, in fact, that will be at the center of the Shelton exhibit as it evolves and possibly begins a new leg of its journey. "We’ve acquired pieces with tremendous ownership in the last few years," said Mrs. Shelton. "We’re thinking of redoing the show with perhaps not so many pieces, but focusing on the history of the pieces, which is really so much about America’s history in the early twentieth century."7 Besides Martelé, the Sheltons have also bought some other types of silver, primarily flatware, over the years. They say, however, that they are gradually culling down that part of their collection. Their passion remains firmly fixed on Martelé, and the many pieces which they anticipate are still left to be discovered.
ENDNOTES 1. Carpenter, Charles H., Jr., Gorham Silver (San Francisco: Alan Wofsy Fine Arts, 1997), 180. The term Martelé was originally used not by Gorham, but by a writer for House Beautiful in an 1899 article on the company’s new hand-wrought wares. By its official introduction in Paris in 1900, Gorham was calling the line Martelé. 2. The 1900 Exposition Universelle, a world fair showcasing the achievements of various countries and companies, took place in Paris from April 14 to Nov. 12, 1900. It attracted more than 50 million people, a record at the time. 3. Keefe, John and Samuel Hough, Magnificent, Marvelous Martelé: American Art Nouveau Silver: the Jolie and Robert Shelton Collection (New Orleans, La.: The New Orleans Museum of Art, 2001), 17. 4. Keefe, John W., "Masterworks in Martelé from the Robert and Jolie Shelton Collection," Silver Magazine 38 (November/December, 2001): 39. See this issue for an in-depth history of Martelé. 5. Keefe, Magnificent, Marvelous Martelé, 170. 6. A detailed article on the Sinclair service appears in the Nov.-Dec. 2001 issue of Silver Magazine. 7. As of press time, St. Petersburg, Fla. was the exhibit’s last scheduled stop. The Sheltons hope about 15 pieces of Martelé will return to the New Orleans Museum of Art for permanent display, when the exhibit has concluded and once hurricanerelated repairs at NOMA have been completed.
For their assistance, the author wishes to thank Robert and Jolie Shelton, John Keefe of the New Orleans Museum of Art, and John Ward of Sotheby's, New York.
Sarah Campbell Drury is a silver collector and scholar living in Nashville. She writes frequently about the antiques market.
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Some patterns have a timeless appeal. Continued interest and inquiry have resulted in a number of older patterns being reintroduced—years, even decades later. This Silver Magazine article is one in a series to aid in distinguishing the “old” or originally produced from their newer counterparts.
Wallace Irian Wallace’s Irian pattern was first introduced in 1902. Art Nouveau in style, the sterling pattern depicted a half nude female and three cherubs, one of which shooting a bow and arrow. The original Irian pattern demonstrated exquisite front detail and clearly defined facial features of the female and the cherubs. Irian was a full Side by Side Comparison of line pattern with well over 100 different piece types. The Dinner Forks and Cold Meat Forks-Medium original knives had silverplated Blunt and Old French blades with bolsters. The esoteric serving pieces that had solid blades, tines and bowls were usually decorated on the front of each. In 1903, the Eton pattern was introduced using the same blanks/dies as Irian. For Eton, Wallace left out the design in the cartouche area containing the female and cherubs. Because Eton is made from the same blank as Irian, Eton is a good pattern to compare quality, piece types, and sizes. Older Irian pieces are smaller in size than the newer pieces. Example: Dinner Fork = 7 1⁄2 " Salad Fork = 6 1⁄4" Cold Meat Fork = 8 1⁄4" no bar Tablespoon = 8 1⁄4" Berry Spoon = 9"
Dinner Fork = 7 7⁄8" Salad Fork = 6 5⁄8" Cold Meat Fork = 8 3⁄4" bar Tablespoon = 8 3⁄4" Berry Spoon = 8 3⁄4"
Reintroduced circa 1993, newer Irian knives have New French stainless steel blades. Due to the discontinuation of most esoteric servers, the number of pieces available in the pattern has been reduced considerably. The definition and quality of the newer pattern lack the distinction of the original design.
Left: Dinner Fork and Cold Meat Fork Estate-Original Production-OLD
• French Grey Finish • The edges are smooth and soft to the touch due to the use and wear over time • The deep patina gives the pieces more distinction and clearly defined detail • Pieces are smaller in size and the serving pieces tend have a different shape 20
Right: Dinner Fork and Cold Meat ForkCirca 1993 (now discontinued) - NEW
• Glossy Finish • The edges can either be rough to the touch or extremely smooth due to over polishing • No patina adds to the lack of distinction and pattern detail • Pieces are larger in size and serving pieces have a different shape • No patina. SILVER MAGAZINE
Up-Close Details of the front side of the Handle
Top: Estate-Original production - OLD • Satin-textured background • Design is more 3 dimensional • Exquisite detail
Bottom: Newer production circa- 1993- NEW • Glossy background, no texture • Lacks a 3 dimensional quality • Detail is smudged, not clearly defined
Mark-up Close
Top: Estate-Original production-OLD • Sterling mark is raised and crisp • Wallace trademarks are very detailed
Bottom: Current production-NEW
• Sterling mark is raised • Wallace trademarks are not as crisp and detailed • The deer head is larger and not detailed
Up-Close Details of Backside of the Handle
Top: Estate-Original production-OLD • Tip of handle clearly defined and detailed • Crisp outlined edge to back of handle • Pat. 1902 very clear and raised
Bottom: Current production-NEW
• Tip of handle smudged not very detailed • Outline of back of handle lacks definition • Pat. 1902 not as clear
JULY/AUGUST 2006
21
SAN FRANCISCO
Yerba Buena/Janin Pattern
The
by Pansylea Howard Willburn
W
hen silversmith William Keyser Vanderslice (1823–1899), late of Philadelphia, introduced the coin silver flatware pattern now known as Yerba Buena/Janin (Fig. 1) in 1865, he had been working successfully in San Francisco for seven years. The bustling young city was not two decades from its beginning as the sleepy little village of Yerba Buena. Yerba Buena was the local name of the cove on which San Francisco was built. Excluding the men in the New York Volunteers who were stationed there, the total population in late June 1847 had been 459. As a name choice for a silver pattern, Yerba Buena has a nostalgic connotation, suggesting a romanticized and simpler way of life in San Francisco before the California Gold Rush (Fig. 2). With few extant primary records from mid-nineteenth century San Francisco silversmiths, the origin of names given to their coin silver flatware patterns and the time that these names came into use are difficult to determine. When Dr. Elliot Evans and other
22
collectors began to identify San Francisco silver in the mid-twentieth century, they sometimes assigned names to the patterns, and this is possibly how Janin became part of the name of this pattern. Evans’s wife’s grandfather was Lewis Janin, the superintendent of the Enrequita Mine in New Almaden, Calif.1 Another well-known Janin in San Francisco in the 1860s and 1870s was Henry Janin, a gold-mining and a silver-min-
Fig. 1. William Keyser Vanderslice's Yerba Buena/Janin pattern, ca. 1865. Large coin silver soup ladle, measuring 13 1/2 inches. Marked: “Vanderslice & Co.” SF. Monogram: N. Name of original owner unknown. Petrakis Collection.
ing expert.2 It isn't clear when the names Yerba Buena or Janin first were applied to this pattern, but Yerba Buena/Janin is the name that identifies the pattern to collectors of San Francisco silver. The pattern is plain with a reverse tip, and its beauty is in its simplicity (Fig. 3). It certainly is not original in design. As with many mid-nineteenth century flatware patterns throughout the United States, this pattern is a derivative or a slightly changed version of a style in popular production elsewhere. A large quantity of silver flatware and hollowware from the East Coast was being retailed in San Francisco. Gorham, of Providence, R.I.; Albert Coles, and Wood and Hughes, of New York; and Farrington and Hunnewell, of Boston, among others, were providing silver for retailers in the West. The competition among Eastern silversmiths was stiff for this newly emerging market in California. C.C. Adams, a Gorham sales representative, wrote an interesting letter to John Gorham on July 3, 1860, following his return from a selling trip to San Francisco retailers. Adams, who described the voyage home as twentySILVER MAGAZINE
COIN SILVER:
Fig. 2. "View of San Francisco before the Gold Rush." Lithograph of Yerba Buena, 1847. " Courtesy of the Museum of the City of San Francisco.
three of the worst days he had ever spent, was writing to Gorham, who was in Europe, to apprise him of the California silver market. Adams gave an account of his substantial sales to San Francisco retailers and discussed these retailers’ concerns over the silver content of the pieces being made in the East. According to Adams, prominent San Francisco retailers John W. Tucker and George C. Shreve had pieces they were selling for Wood and Hughes and for Farrington and Hunnewell independently assayed. Adams reported that the Wood and Hughes piece measured only 840/1000 fine and the Farrington and Hunnewell piece 880/1000. The coin silver standard was 900/1000. Adams was quick to add that he had not instigated the controversy in San Francisco about the purity of Wood and Hughes or of Farrington and Hunnewell coin silver, but that he probably would be blamed for it anyway. Adams assured Gorham, “I am confident that we shall do splendid business in the future, as the population becomes more permanent. The demand for our rich goods will increase.”3 JULY/AUGUST 2006
Adams was right. Soon, silversmiths in San Francisco were making their own versions of some of the popular patterns being sold by the East Coast makers. The Yerba Buena pattern is suggestive of a standard pattern made by several silver Eastern manufacturers, an unadorned pattern known variously as Old English, Antique or Windsor. In 1870, five years after Vanderslice introduced what is now known as Yerba Buena/Janin, another San Francisco silver company, Koehler and Ritter, was making the same pattern and marking it with their "K & R" mark. Gotthard Koehler was the silversmith and Charles
some of Reichel’s patterns and introduced others. The customers for whom San Francisco silversmiths made silver flatware and hollowware were as colorful as the West itself. Some of their customers made enormous fortunes during the Gold Rush, either by striking it rich in the gold mines or by providing services to miners. They ordered silver to match the mansions they were building in the West. Some made their fortunes in Nevada’s Comstock Lode silver, and San Francisco silversmiths had a good share of this Virginia City, Nevada market too. Many of these early pioneers in California and the Nevada Territory were people whose real-life adventures would make good movie scripts. Such is the story of California and Nevada Territory pioneer Mary Agnes Gray Forman (Fig. 4), for whom Koehler
Fig. 3. The Yerba Buena/Janin coin silver pattern introduced by San Francisco silversmiths W.K. Vanderslice in 1865 and by Koehler and Ritter in 1870. The back of a handle shows the only ornamentation, a simple tip. Collection of John and Martha Ervin. Photo: Butch King.
Ritter was the bookkeeper in this company. Koehler was born in Saxony in 1823. He was in San Francisco by 1854, where he was employed as a jeweler. By 1864, he was back in San Francisco working for silversmith Frederick Reichel. Following Reichel’s death in 1867, Koehler and Ritter acquired most of the equipment and business of the successful Reichel for whom they had worked. Koehler and Ritter continued to make
Fig. 4. Mary Agnes Gray Forman (1843–1919). Courtesy of the Puente Valley Historical Society. Photographer and exact date are unknown.
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house beside the San Gabriel River. To support her family, Charlotte, an accomplished seamstress, started making hats and sewed for the emigrants who were resting in camps along the willows.5 El Monte now proudly claims Charlotte Gray as its first American businesswoman, although her millinery business didn’t last long. She met and, in Fig. 5. An 1870s view showing the John Rowland family home and a small portion of the Rancho de la Puente. Courtesy of the 1852, married a wealthy, Puente Valley Historical Society. Photo: Westervelt of Los Angewidowed pioneer, John les from a view by Thompson and West. Rowland, who had been and Ritter, in 1870, made a coin silver in California since 1841. flatware service for twelve in the Yerba John Rowland and his friend, Buena/Janin pattern, and retailed it William Workman, had received a large through Nye and Co. of Virginia City, land grant, known as the Rancho de la Nev. 4 Born in Covington, Ky., in 1843, Puente, in 1842. The ranch was located Mary Agnes was the daughter of John about twenty miles east of what was then B. and Charlotte Marilla (Gavitte) Gray. Los Angeles and consisted of a 48,790When Mary Agnes was seven years old, acre tract that formerly was part of the the family began an overland journey San Gabriel Mission. When the men difrom Kentucky to California. The trip vided the land in 1868, Rowland received turned tragic in the Guadalupe Moun- the eastern half, where he raised cattle, tains out of El Paso, Texas, when Apache grapes, wheat, and fruit. Rowland’s son, Indians ambushed John Gray. Gray had Billy, later discovered oil on this land and left camp to search for some of the mules organized the Puente Oil Company. he was driving, and when he failed to re- Charlotte Gray's marriage to John Rowturn to camp, Charlotte sent two of the land brought financial security and men traveling with them to search for connections to the Gray children.6 Mary Agnes was educated at the him. The men found John Gray's body and buried him; but Charlotte refused to Notre Dame Convent in San Jose and at believe he was dead, and she wouldn’t the Atkins School in Benicia, Calif. Just break camp until the men either found after her nineteenth birthday, she marhim alive or brought her a piece of his ried Charles Forman on Oct. 15, 1862, at shirt. The men returned with a piece of her stepfather’s Rancho de la Puente Charles Forman, who was born in blood-soaked tucking from the shirt she had made for him, and she then knew Oswego, N.Y., in 1835, had arrived in San John had been killed. Charlotte, still a Francisco in 1853. He joined his uncle, young woman, had become a widow Col. Ferris Forman, the postmaster of with three children. Her small group Sacramento, who gave his young caught up with the Ira Thompson nephew the job of cashier in the post ofwagon train headed for California. They fice. In 1857, at the close of his uncle’s arrived in the San Gabriel Valley and set- term, Charles went overland with a small tled in the community of Willow Grove, party to Washington, D.C., to settle the later to become El Monte, where Char- postmaster’s accounts with the Postal lotte set up housekeeping in a little mud Department. He returned to California 24
and, for the next two years, served as Deputy Secretary of State in Sacramento. Forman then moved to Virginia City, Nevada Territory, where he was first employed as an agent for Wells, Fargo and Company He became superintendent of the Overman and Caledonia silver mines and was involved in other businesses in Virginia City during the Comstock Lode bonanza days. One of his claims to fame in Western lore is that he was part of a group of 97 volunteers who fought 500 Indians. After five hours of fighting, only 27 of the volunteers had survived. Contemporaries described Forman as a man of great mental and physical strength, but one with a gentle and kindly personality. He was noted for his character, his uniform courtesy and his business acumen.7 Mary Agnes moved to Virginia City, Nevada Territory, following her marriage to Charles Forman. One may wonder what the nineteen-year-old bride thought when she first saw the place that was to be her new home. The city is said to have been christened “Old Virginny Town” by a drunken miner who dropped his bottle, but most often it is simply called “Virginia.” Virginia City was a newly constructed mining town perched more than 6,000 feet high upon a plateau on the eastern face of Mount Davidson. Surrounded on all sides by rugged hills and rocky mountain peaks, it seemed a most unlikely place to build a city. Its location on top of the Comstock Lode defined Virginia City, and it would grow to have 20,000 inhabitants with 10,000 more in adjoining Gold Hill, which was just a mile away. The terrain was barren with no grass or shrubs, unless one counted the dusty, gray sagebrush, which was everywhere. There had been some nut pine trees and scrub cedar on the sides of the mountains, but they had long since been burned for fuel by the miners. Everything had to be imported from “outside,” and there were daily traffic jams of wagon teams, either bringing ore from the mines or needed supplies to the mines and the community. SILVER MAGAZINE
Fig. 6. Pie fork in the Yerba Buena/Janin pattern from the Mary Agnes Forman set. Made by Koehler and Ritter, ca. 1870. Pieces in the Ervin Collection of Mary Agnes’ service for twelve include table forks, teaspoons, and the pie forks. Courtesy of John and Martha Ervin. Photo: Butch King.
Because of the steep terrain, runaway wagons were common. Virginia City was described as isolated, dirty, and noisy. Its earliest citizens, mostly miners, were said to be so raucous, and the noise level from brawling so high, that visitors couldn't sleep at night. There was also noise, night and day, from the mining equipment. Although geographically isolated, there was a steady stream of people coming and going. Six stagecoach companies brought people of all kinds: politicians, gamblers, miners, merchants, writers, speculators, actors, bankers, prostitutes, lawyers, robbers, and some with such checkered pasts that
fects of the promise of such wealth were positive. San Francisco bankers' speculation led to widespread bank failures and economic problems for the mining industry. The story of the economy of the Comstock was always one of ups and downs.8 As more men brought their wives and children to Virginia City, the quality of life improved. There were churches, a school, an opera, a theater, and stores, but society and economics remained centered on mining. Impressive homes, sometimes referred to as “castles” or “mansions,” and furnished in the most expensive and fashionable styles, were created with Com-
It was a common practice for silversmiths to make silver for retailers, who would then add their store’s stamp to the back of the pieces. In the case of Mary Agnes’s silver, both the maker's mark of Koehler and Ritter, "K&R," of San Francisco, and the mark of the retailer, "Nye and Company," of Virginia City, Nev., were stamped on each piece it would be difficult to classify them in just one category. Others were just ordinary people hoping to strike it rich. In a broader sense, the Comstock Lode was not isolated from national and international life, because its silver wealth was financing many things in faraway places. This silver helped President Abraham Lincoln pay for the Civil War. Wealth from the Comstock financed all types of industry and evolving technology in America and Europe. Not all of the efJULY/AUGUST 2006
stock wealth. Charles Forman built a fine home in Virginia City for Mary Agnes and their two children, Eloise and Charles Jr. The Formans’ position in the community required frequent entertaining, at which Mary Agnes was adept. Good silver was necessary to set a good table. By the 1870s, a formal dinner could consist of five to eighteen courses, if served in a style popularized by French politician and gourmet Anthelme BrillatSavarin.9 Savarin advocated serving in
courses, a style that became fashionable in America following the Civil War. Course service required more silver. A flatware service for twelve in 1870 could be quite extensive. Place pieces could include table and pie forks; place, tea, and coffee spoons; mustard spoons and sugar spoons; sifters; preserve spoons; and butter, tea, and dessert knives. The need for more serving pieces also grew, and the number and type increased throughout the Victorian period. Serving spoons were generally sold in large units and could vary in size and shape. Pastry servers (pie and cake knives), as well as a fish slice and fork, could complement the set. A big fashion debate was the use (or non-use) of knives at the table. The place and serving pieces chosen by a buyer were pretty much dictated by the types of food being served and the fashion trendsetters of the day. Numerous books and articles were published throughout the nineteenth century for the hostess, specifying minute details of table settings and food etiquette. For example, if one served an oyster course, an oyster ladle, not a soup ladle, would be the preferred server. To meet their serving or social needs, a customer could choose a flatware pattern and then order selected pieces or order a complete set. We do not know the original number of pieces in Mary Agnes’s service for twelve, but pie forks (Fig. 6) suggest she may have served courses, à la Savarin. Mary Agnes purchased her flatware in Koehler and Ritter’s Yerba Buena/Janin coin silver pattern from the jewelry store of Nye and Co. in Virginia City. It was a common practice for silversmiths to make silver for retailers, who would then add their store’s stamp to the back of the 25
time. Eaves and Nye moved in the development of pioneer traction fatheir business to the Nevada cilities, including the Los Angeles Cable Territory in the fall of 1862, Railway Co. He next turned to the develthe same year and season that opment of water and electric power. In Mary Agnes married Charles 1902, he became president of the Kern Forman and moved to Vir- River Company, the first long-distance Fig. 7. The marks of Koehler and Ritter, makers of San Franginia City. Both Eaves and electricity transmission firm in Los Angecisco sSilver, and of retailer Nye and Co. of Virginia City, Nevada. Nye did not use this mark after 1871, and Koehler Nye were involved in com- les and was also secretary of the Pacific and Ritter started making the Yerba Buena/Janin pattern in munity life; Eaves was Light and Electric Power Company. He 1870, making it easy to date Mary Agnes Forman's silver. Courtesy of John and Martha Ervin Photo: Butch King. elected mayor of Virginia served for two years as president of the Los City in 1870, and Nye served Angeles Chamber of Commerce, and conas a County Commissioner. Around the tinued to be a heavy investor in real estate pieces. In the case of Mary Agnes’s siltime Mary Agnes ordered her silver in in and around Los Angeles. ver, both the maker's mark of Koehler Because of the Formans’ large circle 1870, perhaps not coincidentally, her stepand Ritter, "K&R," of San Francisco, and father, John Rowland, portioned out his of business associates, family, and personal the mark of the retailer, "Nye and Comlarge estate, and Mary Agnes pany," of Virginia City, Nev., were was one of the heirs. She stamped on each piece (Fig. 7). This could well afford her new silpractice of double marking made sense, ver, which she ordered with because the reputation of a prominent her full name, "Mary A. Forjeweler in a community was often betman," prominently engraved ter known than the name of a distant on the front of the handle of silver manufacturer. each piece (Fig. 8). Emanuel Nye, the Virginia City reCharles Forman was maktailer who sold Mary Agnes her silver, ing his own fortune. In 1865, Fig. 8. The engraved name of "Mary A. Forman" appears on would likely have known Charles Forthe front of each piece of her silver in this pattern. Courtesy of he started buying land in Los John and Martha Ervin Photo: Butch King. man in Virginia City, if not earlier in Angeles. On Dec. 18, 1870, California. Nye, from a well-connected Charles and Mary Agnes bought Row- friends in the Los Angeles area, the family family, was an 1849 pioneer to Califorland’s remaining holdings of another entertained often, just as they had in Virnia. Nye and his father-in-law, William large tract of land, Rancho Los Huecos, in ginia City. The Formans lived on what was T. Eaves, who is credited with being San Clara County, Calif., just southeast then West Pico Street, near Figueroa. The Sacramento’s first silversmith, were in of where the Lick Observatory is today. In house in which they lived was set in the the jewelry and silver business on J 1882, Forman’s increasing investments in middle of a ten-acre orange grove, but the Street in Sacramento from 1857 to 1862. California and the economic hard times most interesting thing about their home is Charles Forman also was in Sacrain the Comstock led him to move his fam- that it was the same house that Charles Formento, serving as California’s Deputy ily to Los Angeles, where he was involved man had built for his family in Virginia Secretary of State during part of this City. Not wanting to leave their home behind, Forman had transported the whole house to Los Angeles. When one looks at the geography and distance (even considering partial rail transport) and the time period in which it was done, this move seems daunting. The house stood in its charming setting in the orange grove until 1913, when the Formans’ biographer, in California and Californians, tells us that it was wrecked to make way for the construction and improvement that extended beyond the ever-growing Los Angeles business district. We might say the home became the victim of progress.
The house in which they lived was set in the middle of
a ten-acre orange grove, but the most interesting thing about their home is that it was the same house that
Charles Forman had built for his family in Virginia
City. Not wanting to leave their home behind, For-
man had transported the whole house to Los Angeles.
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The fate of the home provides an analogy to what happened to the Yerba Buena/Janin silver pattern. It was popular in its day, but as decorative tastes changed and more fashionable patterns came along, it was replaced by new styles. We have no records from Koehler and Ritter, who went out of business in 1884, nor from Vanderslice, that indicate how many years the Yerba Buena/Janin pattern was produced, but pieces that bear the sterling mark, as contrasted with coin, suggest that it remained in production at least until the end of the 1870s. By the 1880s, silver companies were still making the plain blank, often called the Antique pattern, in sterling. New styles were calling for bright-cut, hand engraving on these blanks, often with aesthetic motifs made popular by design elements from the mysterious and alluring Orient. The simplistic design of the Yerba Buena/Janin pattern gives it an enduring quality, although few today would choose to have a full name prominently engraved on the front of each handle as Mary Agnes Forman did. We are glad, however, that Mary Agnes chose to do so, and that pieces of her silver have survived. Her silver gives us a glimpse of the interesting life of its first owner and of how San Francisco silversmiths made and marketed silver for pioneer families. Coin silver enthusiasts John and Martha Ervin have part of Mary Agnes’s silver in their collection today. Their questions about its provenance, maker, and retailer led this author to research and write this article.
NOTES 1. See Dr. Elliot Evans’s interview with Deborah Cooper in Silver in the Golden State: Images and Essays Celebrating the History and Art of Silver, Edgar Morse, ed. (Oakland: Oakland Museum History Department, 1986). 2. Henry Janin was a widely respected mining engineer and expert with a good track record in gold and silver, but he wasn’t good with diamonds. As the mining expert called to examine the alleged site of a secret diamond field, he failed to detect that the diamonds had been “salted.” The fraud became known as the Great Diamond Hoax of the 1870s, and it led to financial ruin for many well-known San Franciscans. 3. For the full text of this interesting letter from C.C. Adams to John Gorham, dated July 3, 1860, which is in the Gorham archives, see pp. 61–62 in Charles H. Carpenter Jr.'s Gorham Silver 1831–1981 (New York: Dodd, Meade and Company, 1982). 4. See Pansylea Howard Willburn, “Eaves and Nye of Sacramento, California, and Virginia City, Nevada Territory: Pioneer Jewelers and Silversmiths in Gold and Silver Country,” Silver Magazine 35, no. 6 (November-December 2003): 28–37. 5. Donna Crippen, curator of the El Monte Historical Society, furnished information on the Grays’ overland trip to California and on Charlotte Gray’s early years in California. Correspondence and printed material, 2003. 6. Cecilia Wictor, curator of the LaPuente Valley Historical Society, and the great great granddaughter of John Rowland, furnished the photographs of Mary Agnes (Gray) Forman and of Rancho de la Puente as well as shared many details and anecdotes about the early residents. Correspondence, conversations, and printed material, 2003. 7. Biographical material on Mary Agnes Gray and Charles Forman is from California and Californians, Vol. 3, Rockwell D. Hunt, ed. (Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1932); from Harris Newmark, Sixty Years in Southern California, 1853-1913, Containing the Reminiscences of Harris Newmark (New York: The Knickerbocker Press, 1916); and from the archives of the LaPuente Valley Historical Society. 8. Descriptions of Virginia City are from the contemporary writing of William Wright (1829–1898), who lived in Virginia City for decades and wrote for the Territorial Enterprise under the pen name of Dan DeQuille. His entertaining writings were published in The Big Bonanza, an Authentic Account of the Discovery, History and Working of the WorldRenowned Comstock Lode of Nevada (New York: Crowell, 1969). 9. Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, a self-anointed arbiter of dining rules, published a book in 1825, in which he advocated, among other things, the style of serving in courses, as contrasted with the Italianate style of putting everything on the table at once. See Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, The Physiology of Taste or Transcendental Gastronomy [1825]. Illustrated by anecdotes and distinguished artists and statesmen of both continents. Translated from the last Paris edition by Fayette Robinson (Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston, 1854).
Pansylea Howard Willburn (willburn@earthlink.net) is a collector and student of silver with a special interest in California silver.
JULY/AUGUST 2006
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The Evolution of the Silver Asparagus Server in Europe and America By Dale E. Bennett, William P. Hood, Jr., and Charles S. Curb
Part I: Asparagus in History, and European Servers Asparagus In History Asparagus is an elegant vegetable. If one’s aim were to feed as many people as possible with a given amount of land and labor, it would be among the last crops chosen. Yet people have been fond of asparagus for as far back as we have reliable commentary on eating habits. It is highly probable that our hunter/gatherer ancestors ate the tender shoots of wild asparagus during the untold millennia of prehistory. There are about 300 species of asparagus native to a region extending all the way from Siberia to southern Africa. A great majority are edible, though a few (mostly African) varieties are poisonous and are grown only as ornamental plants. Cultivation of the vegetable is labor-intensive. For the first two years after sowing, a bed is unproductive. By the third year, the shoots are thick enough to market and a well-tended bed will continue to generously produce for two more seasons. Thereafter, the quality of the asparagus declines rapidly so land on which it is grown is productive only about half the time. The milder-flavored white asparagus, preferred by many Europeans, requires extra care in that the growing stalks must be continuously covered with dirt to prevent exposure to sunlight that would otherwise turn them green. Each stalk is hand-harvested by a worker who probes into the mound and cuts it with a special knife. The stalks are handled by hand from the field to a shipping crate to protect the fragile tips. One should bear all this in mind when complaining about the price. The word for asparagus is similar in all of the languages that have a word for it. It is likely that nearly all such terms have a common origin in the ancient Persian word asparag (a sprout or shoot). The ancient Greek word was asperagos and the Romans called it sparagi (asparago being the Italian word for it today). The German word for asparagus is spargel (hence the name spargelheber for asparagus lifter/server), and esparrago is the Spanish term. The use of this same word is documented in England circa 1000 AD1 and suggests that the vegetable was consumed, or at least known, in that country considerably earlier than is usually indicated by modern writers on culinary matters. 28
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Figure 1. Scissor type asparagus tongs. Dublin, James Kenzie, 1777-1787. The earliest type of asparagus server. Figure 2. Bow tongs, wishbone type, London, William Bayley, 1775-1785. The arms are attached to a rotating circular spring.
Fig. 1
The French word is asperges. Although the venerable Larousse Gastronomique flatly asserts that asparagus was not grown in France before the reign of Louis XIV (r. 1643-1715)2, the fact is that the vegetable was known and eaten in that country well before the Sun King developed his great fondness of it. According to the Oxford Companion to Food, the cultivation of asparagus in France is documented earlier than 1469.3 Knowing that the Romans cultivated asparagus, we consider it probable that some asparagus was raised and consumed during all the centuries between the decline of Rome and the much later time when we first find Europeans mentioning it again in writing. In England, the term for asparagus had an unusual evolution. Sparagi was borrowed from Latin as early as 1000 AD, and by 1600, the writings of botanists and herbalists had provided the term “asparagus.” Within less than a century, the word asparagus morphed into “sparagrass” and ultimately to “sparrow grass.” It was said that sparrows were inordinately fond of the vegetable, but this may be a case of theory following etymology. According to Walker’s Pronouncing Dictionary (1791), “Sparrow grass is so general that asparagus has an air of stiffness and pedantry.” 4 “Sparrow grass” was the everyday term used by all except botanists and the educated until the nineteenth century. During this time, “asparagus” returned to both the literary and polite use, and “sparrow grass” came to be regarded as boorish and illiterate. JULY/AUGUST 2006
Fig. 2
European Asparagus Servers Asparagus servers originated in England in the 1760’s. The books, Antique Silver Servers for the Dining Table by Seymour Rabinovitch and Silver Flatware, English, Irish and Scottish – 1660-1980 by Ian Pickford provide valuable data on the development of asparagus servers in the United Kingdom.5,6 An example of the earliest type, the scissor tongs, can be found at Londons’s Victoria and Albert Museum - a pair hallmarked 1765 by unknown maker R.I. of London. Rabinovitch illustrates another early pair by Faux and Love of London, which he dates to 1764-1772. These tongs have both a large and a small circular finger grip, and require the use of thumb and first two fingers for the scissor action. The pair illustrated in Figure 1 is Irish, made in Dublin by James Kenzie, working 1777-1787, and is typical of the form. Measuring 93⁄4 inches in length, the tongs are made of heavy gauge silver. They have blades that taper slightly from front to back, and have a maximum width of 3 ⁄4 inch. The inner surfaces of the blades are corrugated on their serving end. One blade has a terminal perpendicular down lip feature to facilitate grasping and holding the spears of asparagus. A common Irish Neo-classical motif is a
bright-cut narrow zigzag band outlining the blades. As frequently seen with Irish flatware of the period, this pair has no date letter. Marks can be found on the outer rim of the finger grips. Although bow tongs originated in the 1770’s, during the time from 18001880 constituted when almost all of the asparagus servers were made in the United Kingdom. The scissor tongs are seldom found after 1800. It is interesting to note that sugar nips and tongs tended to be made in the same form as the asparagus tongs, but appeared as early as 1715. By the 1770’s, bow tongs were also the standard for sugar. The rarest, and probably the earliest, type of bow tongs are the wishbone type. In this form, the bow is not continuous. Instead, the two arms are attached to a flat rotating circular spring that provides a spring action which holds the arms open until depressed. Figure 2 illustrates a typical pair by William Bayley of London, circa 17751785. The tongs measure 91⁄2 inches in length, with the blade measuring 31⁄2 inches long and 1⁄2 inch wide. Similar to the scissor tongs, the blades show the inner corrugations and the terminal perpendicular down lip. The narrow arms are at right angles to the bow and the blades. There is a restraining yoke attached at the junctions of the arm and 29
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
blade, but this is not always present. The illustrated pair is undecorated, which is common. The marks are on the inside of the bow, the typical location on English bow tongs. By the 1780’s, the classic bow tongs were the dominant form of asparagus server. These tongs were composed of three continuous parts: an upper Ushaped bow which provides the spring, a pair of parallel rectangular blades, and two connecting arms. Where the arms attach to the blades, there is typically a yoke which is attached by a screw to one arm, and acts as a restraint to the other arm. Figure 3 illustrates a typical pair of bow tongs, made circa 1780 in London by George Smith. Styled in a Feather Edge
Fig. 6a
Figure 3. Narrow bow tongs, London, George Smith, circa 1780. Beautiful Neoclassical bright-cut engraving. Figure 4. Narrow bow tongs, London, Fearn and Eley, 1801. Pair demonstrates a common half drop. Figure 5. Bow tongs, London, Elizabeth Eaton, 1847. Queen’s pattern. Typical pierced wide blades. A functional improvement on earlier tongs. Figure 6. Bow tongs, Dublin, unknown maker, 1835. Very unusual pair with different shape and size blades, one pierced and one corrugated. Figure 6a. Presentation inscription.
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pattern, the tongs measure 103⁄4 inches in length, and have rectangular blades measuring 4 inches in length and 1⁄2 inch in width. The blades are corrugated, unpierced and have a prominent terminal lip. Featuring beautiful Neo-classical engraving, the bow merges imperceptibly into the arms. There is a crest at the top of the bow Piercing is absent whivh is typical of these narrow bladed tongs. Another example of early narrowbladed bow tongs is by Fearn and Eley of London, a pair in a Fiddle pattern, hallmarked in 1801 (Figure 4). The tongs measure 91⁄4 inches in length, and the blades measure 5⁄8 inch in width. The pair is free of decoration and piercing, and there is a crest at the apex of the bow. In the late Georgian and early Victorian periods, asparagus tongs evolved to have wider blades which were usually pierced and seldom corrugated. Rather than the 1⁄2 to 5⁄8 inch width of earlier tongs, these typically were 11⁄4 to 11⁄2 inches in width. The piercing is similar in design to that seen on fish slice blades of the same period. Figure 5 shows a 101⁄4 inch Queen’s pattern pair of tongs by Elizabeth Eaton of London, hallmarked in 1847. The blades are 11⁄2 inches in width and have a fancy scroll pattern piercing. Although there is a slight drop at the yoke, the tongs are similar in form to the earlier ones. Engraving is absent, as is usually the case in later tongs. Tongs of this type continued to be made into the twentieth century. After 1840, they were increasingly electroplated. A very unusual pair of Irish Fiddle pattern tongs was made in Dublin in 1835 (Figure 6). The maker’s mark is illegible. The tongs measure 101⁄2 inches in length. One blade measures 11⁄2 inches in width and is decorated with two rows of diamond piercing. The other blade is 1 ⁄4 inch longer and measures 7⁄8 inches in width. It has a terminal lip that is not pierced, and is corrugated. The tongs bear a crest and monogram, and include the presentation inscription: “From my dear and affectionate children, 1st JanuSILVER MAGAZINE
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10 Fig. 7
ary 1835” (Figure 6a). The unique elements to this pair of asparagus tongs are: they have different width blades, one blade is pierced and the other corrugated, and they make an unusual presentation piece. Similar to other early serving pieces, some asparagus servers’ use can be debated. The wide-bladed types are very well suited for serving asparagus spears. However, they also are excellent for serving chops, sandwiches, other vegetables, and even pastries. It is certain the English used these as multipurpose servers. England did not undergo the “designated server” frenzy that overtook America in the late nineteenth century. Woe be to the American hostess who served sliced cucumbers with a tomato server, or croquettes with a pastry server. As William Hood points out in his book, Tiffany Silver Flatware 1845-1905, wide-bladed tongs are definitely more efficient for asparagus than the earlier narrow form.7 Although not always the case, the passage of time generally leads to server design improvements. Wide blade tongs, about 11⁄2 inches, were already the norm when the first American asparagus tongs JULY/AUGUST 2006
were made in 1840-1850. Another question is whether the English ever made asparagus serving forks. The answer is yes, but rarely, and probably never after 1800. Pickford quotes from the Garrard manuscripts at the Victoria and Albert Museum that in 1770, William and Thomas Chawner supplied “a 5-prong Asparagus Fork” to Parker and Wakelin.8 In his book, Rabinovitch illustrates a 6-tined vegetable fork made by W. Turton of London in 1773.9 From a practical standpoint, it is impossible to distinguish the eighteenth century asparagus fork from a vegetable fork, or from a salad serving fork - all rare forms. A rare pair of sterling French-style English bow tongs is pictured in Figure 7. They were made in Sheffield around 1905, by Atkin Bros. These tongs measure 71⁄2 inches. Both blades are dished and measure 23⁄4 x 21⁄2 inches. A rod with a round head is present where the arms meet the blades and serves the function of a yoke. The upper blade, arm, and bow show bright-cut floral engraving, while the lower blade and arm are undecorated. Although bow tongs continued to
Figure 7. Bow tongs, Sheffield, Atkin Bros., 1905. Wide blades in the French style. Figure 8. Double-bladed asparagus server. Sheffield, T. Levesley, 1898. Rare sterling example of common late Victorian type. Figure 9. Individual asparagus eater. Sterling, Sheffield, unknown maker, 1898. This place setting piece is rare in England. Figure 10. Bow tongs. Paris, first standard (.950), Odiot, 1819-1839. The earliest French asparagus server in the author’s experience.
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Fig. 11
Fig.12
Fig. 13
Fig. 14
Figure 11. Bow tongs. Paris, first standard (.950), Odiot, 1865-1894. Very English in style. Figure 12. Bow tongs. Paris, first standard (.950), Odiot, 1865-1894. Having blades that are pierced and corrugated is very rare. Figure 13. Bow tongs. Paris, first standard (.950), Louis Gantereau, 1858-1865. Wide, short-bladed asparagus tongs are common. Figure 14. Double- bladed server. Paris, first standard (.950), unknown maker, late nineteenth century. Lever action. Great Neo-classical decoration with Cupid and Venus.
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be made into the twentieth century, another variety of asparagus server appeared near the end of the nineteenth century, the so-called double-bladed type. These servers were produced in large numbers and were mostly made in electroplate. The only sterling example found by the authors is illustrated in Figure 8. These double-bladed tongs were made in Sheffield in 1898, by T. Levesley and measure 101⁄2 inches. They are marked on the
upper blade, shank, and the ornate ferrule and have an ivory in-line handle. The relatively plain unpierced lower blade measures 31⁄2 inches, and the slightly smaller upper blade measures 31⁄4 inches. Showing an extremely high quality piercing, engraving and chasing in a floral Rococo Revival style, the upper blade is attached to the lower blade by a swivel pin. Contiguous with the upper blade is an engraved, truncated upturned lever arm, which falls under its own weight when pressure is released. Although in some ways this double-bladed server resembles the whitebait servers of the early 1800’s, the mechanism of action is a simple lever, as opposed to the complex action of the earlier servers.10 In addition, the absence of piercing on the lower blade precludes serving small fish from boiling fat. Although these are multipurpose servers, the English universally refer to them as asparagus servers. During the Georgian era, almost all sterling asparagus tongs were made in London, with occasional Dublin examples. Although it is hard to imagine that talented and prolific makers such as Carden Terry of Cork never produced asparagus tongs; no example of Scottish or Provincial tongs have been documented. Individual asparagus tongs originated in America in the late 1860’s11. By the end of the century, they were part of most full line service patterns and were used to transfer a single spear from the plate to the mouth. English examples of individual servers are rare and are usually electroplate. A sterling pair, measuring 41⁄4 inches, is illustrated in Figure 9. It has beautiful bright-cut Rococo style engraving, and was made in Sheffield in 1898, by unknown maker JTH/JHN. The mass destruction of silver during the French Revolution makes the study of eighteenth century French servers a nearly impossible task. PostRevolution, pre 1838, asparagus servers exist, but are rare. David Allen states in his book on French flatware that the earliest type of French asparagus server is SILVER MAGAZINE
tongs. Allen observes that the French produced magnificent servers, including the greatest variety for asparagus. He documents a pair made in 1819 by Cahier.12 Unless the tongs have a presentation date, they could only be dated as 1819-1838, as the marks do not change during that period. Figure 10 illustrates an example of another 1819-1838 asparagus tongs. There is a first standard “Michaelangelo Head” mark (indicating .950 fineness) and an incuse guarantee mark for Paris. The wide terminal lip is stamped “ODIOT PARIS”, and the maker’s mark is illegible. Although the house of Odiot dates back to 1690, the period of this server suggests the Odiot in charge was the master
silversmith, Jean Baptiste Odiot. Measuring 10 inches long, the tongs in Figure 10 are bow type and lack a yoke. The blades measure 4 by 15⁄8 inches, and show pale and dot piercing. In their simplicity, they suggest the early nineteenth century English wide-bladed tongs. Surviving French tongs with the “Minerva Head” mark, indicating production in 1838 or later, are numerous. Even though some are in the English style, there is a fascinating variety of ones with wide short blades, usually heavily decorated. A particularly striking pair of asparagus tongs (Figure 11) is another by Odiot of Paris (1865-1894). Located on the outer side of each arm near the yoke is a first standard “Minerva Head,” indicating .950 fineness. The maker’s mark can be found JULY/AUGUST 2006
Fig. 16
on the inner surface of each arm, and the words “ODIOT” and “PARIS” are heavily struck on the lip. The monogrammed tongs are in a simple die-struck pattern and measure 101⁄2 inches with the blades 41⁄2 by 11⁄2 inches. The blades show a delicate floral and leaf piercing typical of what one sees in late Georgian and early Victorian English asparagus tongs. Construction of the tongs is uniquely French. Not readily appreciated in the photograph is the fact that the tongs are made in two halves. They join at the top of the bow by a concealed pin and spring mechanism that provide Fig. 15 the spring action for the tongs. Odiot of Paris offers a third excellent example of asparagus tongs that are in a relatively simple die-struck pattern featuring an empty cartouche (Figure 12). An elaborate monogram surmounted by a crown is at the top of the bow. The tongs measure 11 inches and the blades 3⁄4 by 11⁄4 inches. This pair shows an unusual combination, blades that are both pierced and corrugated. The elaborate piercing and engraving have a Neo-gothic look. While English bow tongs are almost always marked on the inside of the bow, French tongs are marked in a more random fashion. This pair has the “Minerva Head” mark on the outside of both arms and the end of the yoke, with the maker’s mark on the inside of each arm. The close resemblance of these latter two Odiot tongs to the English wide
Fig. 17
Figure 15. Two examples of a clam shell or clamp type asparagus server. Paris, first standard (.950), Alphonse Debain, 1883-1911. Identical in form, but one is Art Nouveau and the other is Rococo Revival. Figure 16. Hooded server. Paris, first standard (.950), unknown maker, late nineteenth century. Hollow handle and elegant Rococo pierced and engraved blade. Figure 17. Hooded server. Paris, first standard (.950), Ollier & Caron, 1910-1931.
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Fig. 18
Fig. 19
Fig. 20
Figure 18. Hooded server. German, .800 standard, unknown maker, late nineteenth century, Iris pattern. Almost identical to Figure 16. Figure 19. Bow tongs. Dutch, Amsterdam, A. Bonebakker and Son, 1867. Very English in style. (From the collection of B. Seymour Rabinovitch). Figure 20. Bow tongs. Russian, St. Petersburg, A.S. Bragin, assayer Yakov Lyapunov, 1899-1903, marked 84 (.875). English in structure, but French in style.
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bladed bow tongs by Eaton in Figure 5 may not be a coincidence. It is known that one of the Odiots worked for a time in the Chawner workshops in London, makers of many English asparagus tongs.13 They also closely resemble the most common type of American tongs from the coin and early sterling period. A third pair is representative of a group of very un-English asparagus tongs. They are 8 inches long with blades measuring 31⁄4 x 3 inches (Figure 13). The bow is in a die-struck pattern featuring a shell and swirls of foliage. The arms attach to the blades by a shell boss, and there is no yoke. Marks on the outside of the bow feature the first standard “Minerva Head,” indicating .950 fineness, and the maker’s mark for Louis Gantereau of Paris (1858-1866). Both blades feature an unusual design trait of Rococo piercing and engraving on the upper surface. Although blade size and shape varies greatly in these short serving tongs, most have elaborate Rococo engraving and piercing. They remind one of the late nineteenth century Tiffany tongs, which
also lack a yoke, pictured by Hood et al in Figure 125.14 Figure 14 illustrates a beautiful double bladed Paris server measuring 91⁄2 inches with intricately pierced, 4 by 31⁄2 inch slightly concave and convex blades. The lever action is operated by a shell thumbpiece and the in-line flat handle has a simple die-struck Neo-classical design. While the lower blade features a Neo-classical scene of Cupid and Venus in a vineyard, the upper blade only has an empty oval cartouche and Neo-classical and Rococo shell decoration. The only identifiable mark is a first standard (.950) “Minerva Head” on the blade. There is an elegant shell boss. It appears that a crest or monogram has been skillfully removed from the cartouche, which was originally supposed to be the focal point of the server. An unusual asparagus server, uniquely French, dating to the late nineteenth century, is often described as a clam shell type server. Most of these asparagus servers are electroplate and many made were by Christofle. The clamp-like servers in Figure 15 have a first standard (.950) “Minerva Head” on the inside of each half, along with the maker’s mark of Alphonse Debain of Paris. He worked from 1883 to 1911, and invented this style of server in 1884.15 The servers are diestruck and made in two halves. Unless hand pressure is exerted, the clamps are open. The spring action comes from a metal rod, which passes through a tubular channel at the top of the bow, and is fixed in place with a flower-like button at each end. Each half measures 41⁄2 by 31⁄4 inches. In one server, the decoration is clearly Art Nouveau, while the other shows Rococo Revival style piercing and engraving. Another type of French asparagus server is shown in Figure 16. It measures 101⁄2 inches in length and has a simple hollow floral die-struck handle with a monogram. The marks are poorly struck on the handle, with only a first standard (.950) Paris “Minerva Head” legible. With SILVER MAGAZINE
Fig. 21
a blade deeply curved at the back, these pieces tend to be fully or partially hooded like many late nineteenth century American asparagus forks. The blade has a scalloped contour, and measures 5 x 4 inches. It is completely decorated with an intricate Rococo floral and leafy pattern of chasing and piercing. Figure 17 illustrates another hooded server that was made in Paris by Ollier and Caron (1910-1931). It lacks the Minerva head but has the first standard (.950) “Mercury Head”, indicating the piece was marked for export. Measuring 101⁄4 inches long, the server is hooded with a 41⁄2 x 4 inch blade. The blade has floral engraving and piercing and a large vacant central area presumably intended for a crest or monogram. Decorated with a wreath design, the hollow die-struck handle is attached to the blade by an unusual posterior boss in the form of a flowering plant. Actual asparagus forks were made that closely resembled hooded servers, but with very short tines at the end of the blade. Another similar server came from Germany near the end of the nineteenth century. The server measures 11 inches and has a die-struck Art Nouveau Iris pattern handle (Figure 18). A part of the handle is gold washed, as is the beautiful ornate blade. Marks can be found on the handle and consist of a standard mark of 800, a crown, and a crescent. The absence of marks on the serving portion of many such pieces, French or German, raises the question as to whether that portion is electroplate. JULY/AUGUST 2006
Fig. 22
During the nineteenth century, bow tongs were the asparagus server of choice on the Continent. Figure 19 shows a Dutch pair that is almost identical to English narrow bladed tongs of 17801800. They were made in Amsterdam in 1867, by A. Bonebakker and Son, and measure 91⁄4 inches. The blades are corrugated, undecorated, and measure 4 by 5 ⁄8 inches. A simple thread design edges the server. There is no yoke, but the blade is restrained by a pin with large round heads. The marks are on the inside of the arms. English influence in Dutch silver is not surprising, as their hallmarking systems are similar, with the Dutch being one of the few other nations to regularly employ date letters and the lion to signify purity. Russian asparagus servers are extremely rare. The narrow-blade bow tongs in Figure 20 measure 105⁄8 inches, with corrugated blades measuring 4 x 1 inch. Displayed on the outside of one arm is the Kokoshnik mark with 84 (.875 std.) and the head facing left, indicating 1896-1908. The assayer’s mark is Yakov Lyapunov (1899-1903) of St. Petersburg and the maker is A.S. Bragin. The tongs are extremely heavy gauge silver and are engraved with a crest featuring a crown
Figure 21. Bow tongs, Austrian, no maker’s mark, 1921-1925, .800 standard. Figure 22. Bow tongs. German, no maker’s mark, late nineteenth century, .800 standard. Note blades are corrugated on both sides, and bow is also die-struck on inner surface.
over an eagle. The die-struck shell motif on the bow and blade base show a French influence. Figure 21 illustrates an example of Austrian bow tongs measuring 91⁄4 inches. The heavily pierced blades are engraved with a Rococo floral design and measure 31⁄4 x 15⁄8 inches. It is this elaborate Rococo piercing on the short, wide blades that shows the strong French influence seen in Austrian, German and Russian servers. Marked on the outside base of one blade is an incuse “Toucan” in a hexagon with the letter “W” below and the number “4” above, indicating .800 standard. According to Tardy’s book, International Hallmarks on Silver, the absence of a maker’s mark places the date between 1921-1925.16 The beautiful German bow tongs in Figure 22 are from the late nineteenth century. They are marked at the end of the blade with a double headed eagle, a crescent, and .800 standard. Measuring 93⁄4 inches in length with the blades 33⁄4 35
Fig. 23
by 13⁄4 inches, the tongs have three unusual features: the blades are corrugated on both the inner and outer surfaces, there is no terminal lip, and the very ornate pattern is double-struck. A fancy monogram is present, and the pattern features shells, flowers and an elaborate cartouche. Although of German origin, the elaborate style suggests French influences. Scandinavian asparagus servers are very rare. Danish silver expert Rowland Matteson states that bow tongs were the earliest form, and originated in the early 1800’s.17 A Copenhagen server made in 1901 by P. Hertz, with assayers mark for S. Groth, is illustrated in Figure 23. It has a spade shaped deeply dished blade that measures 41⁄4 inches in length and narrows from 4 inches at the tip to 23⁄4 at the base. The server is overall 91⁄2 inches in length and feature a bright-cut floral engraving and piercing. Designed with a Figure 23. Asparagus serving spade. Danish, Copenhagen, P. Hertz, 1901, assayer S. Groth. Floral bright-cut engraving and piercing.
rope border, the die-struck oval handle is slightly up-turned at the tip. European asparagus servers lack the artistry of American examples of the second half of the nineteenth century. The French, however, were an exception to the rule; for they produced many beautiful and imaginative servers. Surprisingly, the first English asparagus tongs predate American asparagus servers by over 75 years. The eighteenth century is considered to be English silver’s greatest hour, while the nineteenth was America’s century of innovation in silver.
Part two of this article will appear in the Sept/Oct issue and will present the history and aesthetics of American asparagus servers. All pieces are from the collection of the senior author unless otherwise specified. Photography by Alamo Photolabs, San Antonio, Texas
Dr. Dale Bennett is a retired academic physician and practicing Pathologist. Tracing the development of American and English flatware servers is his primary interest. He may be contacted at drdaleb@aol.com. William P. Hood, Jr., M.D., is a retired cardiologist and former university professor who lives in Alabama. Charles S. Curb, Ph.D., previously a college English professor, is now an antiques dealer based in Arkansas.
REFERENCES 1. Oxford English Dictionary, Vol. 1. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971, p. 492. 2. Larousse Gastronomique, American Edition. New York: Clarkson Potter, 2001, p. 46. 3. Alan Davidson, Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 199, p.38. 4. Quoted in Oxford English Dictionary, op. cit. 5. B. Seymour Rabinovitch, Antique Silver Servers for the Dining Table. Joslin Hall, Concord, Mass., 1991, pp. 263-271. 6. Ian Pickford, Silver Flatware, English, Irish and Scottish - 1660-1980. Antique Collectors Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1983, p. 178.
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7. William P. Hood, Jr., Roslyn Berlin, and Edward Wawrynek, Tiffany Silver Flatware– 1845-1905-When Dining Was An Art. Antique Collectors Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 2000, pp. 97-98.
12. David Allan, French Flatware (In Preparation).
8. Pickford, Silver Flatware, p 178.
15. David Allan, Personal Communication.
9. Rabinovitch, Antique Silver Servers, p 264.
16. Tardy, International Hallmarks on Silver, Paris, 1981, p 76.
10. Dale E. Bennett, “Whitebait, Englishmen, and Double Bladed Servers.” Silver Magazine, Jan-Feb 2002, pp. 36-41.
13. Charles Cage, Personal Communication. 14. William P. Hood, Jr. Tiffany Silver, p. 99.
17. Rowland Matteson, Personal Communication.
11. Charles Venable, Silver in America – 18401940, A Century of Splendor. Abrams, New York, 1994, p. 139.
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Antebi & Associates, Inc. announces that it has sold it's assets and interest in
Estes-Simmons Silverplating, Ltd. to
Guia Goguichvili
Mr. Goguichvili will be operating the business as Estes-Simmons Silversmiths, Inc. Lilly, Michael, and Mark Antebi will be doing business as
Atlanta Silver & Antiques 1048 Northside Drive Atlanta, GA 30318 ph. 404.875.9582 fax 678.302.9303 www.atlantasilver.com mma@atlantasilver.com We specialize in American, English and Continental Holloware and Flatware. Please contact us with your buying or selling lists.
• Restoration • Repair of all metals • Refinishing of all metals
1050 Northside Drive Atlanta, GA 30318
• Custom fabrication
800.645.4193 www.estes-simmons.com
Estes-Simmons has been restoring family treasures since 1891 and where quality and satisfaction come first.
before
after
Bobby Jones trophy restored after being stolen and almost destroyed.
New owner & master silversmith, Gia Goguichvili, with custom art work.
Book
eview —by William P. Hood, Jr.
Tiffany at the World’s Columbian Exposition Authors: John M. Blades, Director of the Flagler Museum, and John Loring, Design Director of Tiffany & Co. Publisher: Henry Morrison Flagler Museum, Palm Beach, Fla., 2006 Hardcover, 9 3/4” x 11 3/4”, 156 pages, more than 100 large-scale color and B & W illustrations plus many thumbnail images, checklist and table of objects, index
O
f the hundred or so World’s Fairs held between 1851 and 1925, the greatest was the one in Chicago in 1893 commemorating the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s discovery of the New World. The fair covered 686 acres and included 300 buildings in the Classical Style that housed 65,000 exhibits and were arranged around 60 acres of lagoons and waterways. Among its marvels were a moving sidewalk and the world’s first Ferris wheel. Although it occurred during a severe economic depression and was open only six months, the fair attracted 27.5 million visitors; a number nearly equal to half the U.S. population at the time. Tiffany’s “million-dollar exhibit” was one of the most popular, displaying some 500 objects/sets, including the famous yellow, 125 3/8-carat “Tiffany Diamond.” Displaying lavish jewelry, the magnificent enameled silver Magnolia Vase, masterpieces in silver and gold, silver-mounted revolvers, clocks, watches, etc., helped Tiffany to win 56 medals. This book was written to accompany an exhibition of the same name that appeared only at the Flagler Museum January 17 through April 16, 2006. The exhibition pulled together for the first time since 1893, fortyfour of the Tiffany objects shown in Chicago. Deciding what the objects were was no problem: Tiffany had published a pocket-sized
catalogue listing all, describing some but illustrating none of the exhibited wares, and had stamped most of those specially made for the exposition with a “Globe Over T ” mark. Finding them was another matter, but somehow the organizers managed it. The book is a catalogue raisonné of the 1893 Tiffany exhibit with the addition of large color illustrations of major objects, plus interim history and current location/ownership, if known. There are images of original design drawings for some of the jewelry and silver. Included (without comment) in a tabulation of tableware is a real curiosity: a set of twelve coffee spoons in the Olympian pattern made of aluminum. In addition, there are informative essays by John Blades on “Revisiting the White City” (the popular name for the allwhite fair complex) and “Whitehall’s Connection to the World’s Columbian Exposition and Tiffany” (Whitehall is the former residence of Henry Flagler and is now the Flagler Museum); and by John Loring on “Tiffany at the World’s Columbian Exposition.” The book also contains reprints of two contemporary accounts of the Tiffany exhibit: one by George Frederic Heydt (personal secretary to Tiffany’s president, Charles L. Tiffany, and the firm’s first public relations officer), the other written for the French Ministry of Commerce by Henri Vever, reportedly the world’s author-
ity on jewelry design at that time. In the words of Blades: “The World’s Columbian Exposition was a transforming event in the development of American Culture.” This luscious book heightens our appreciation of the exposition and especially Tiffany’s contributions to it.
Some other noteworthy books on Tiffany Silver: Tiffany Table Settings by Bramhall House, New York, 1960. The New Tiffany Table Settings by John Loring and Henry B. Platt, Doubleday, 1981. Tiffany Silver by Charles Carpenter and Mary Grace Carpenter, Alan Wofsy Fine Arts, 1997. Tiffany Silver Flatware, 1845-1905: When Dining Was an Art by William P. Hood Jr., MD, Roslyn Berlin, and Edward Wawrynek, Antique Collector’s Club, 2000. Magnificent Tiffany Silver by John Loring, Harry N. Abrams, New York, 2001.
William P. Hood Jr., M.D., is the principal author of Tiffany Silver Flatware, 1845-1905: When Dining Was an Art (Antique Collectors’ Club, 2000; reprinted 2003) and is a frequent contributor to Silver Magazine. 40
SILVER MAGAZINE
C L A S S I F I E D S All classifieds MUST be prepaid before the deadline.* Rates are $1.00 per word when submitted typewritten via mail or fax, $.80 per word when submitted via e-mail, $10.00 minimum. JULY/AUGUST 2006 copy and payment must reach this office by the morning of May 16, 2006. No advertising proofs are furnished on classified ads. Silver Magazine: P.O. Box 10246, Greensboro, NC 27404. • Contact Silver Magazine via e-mail: sales@silvermag.com
For Sale: Costa's MATTLYNE HOUSE, Sterling, (*=Mono) Prices each. SH/INS Extra. DURGIN NEW QUEENS C.M.Fk (G/W Tines) $155.00, ESSEX Claret Spoon (13.25") $275.00, LOUIS XV M.Saltspoon $65.00, STRAWBERRY, (Marked PURE COIN) Teaspoons $45.00, Sugar Shell $75.00, Master Saltspoon $125.00; WHITING DRESDEN 12- Egg Spoons $755.00 set, Cream Ladle (5.3/4") $89.00; INTERNATIONAL FRONTENAC 6-Sal.Fks $235.00 Set, 6-Bouillon Spoons $260.00 set, 5-Teaspoons (5.7/8") $135.00 Set, A/S TeaStrainer $105.00, 4 -Teaspoons (5.1/2") $92.00 Set; DOM&HAFF, RENAISSANCE Cheese-Scoop*(6.1/8") $275.00, Salad Serving Duo (Fork 8.3/4"/Spoon 9") $995.00 Set, IceCream Suite Comprising Serving Spoon (7.3/8") (G/W Bowl) and 12 Forks (5.3/4") $1,995.00 Set, Claret Spoon (Spiral-Twist Shaft) (13.1/4") $675.00, CUPID Stuffingspoon $295.00; GORHAM MEDALLION Sugar Sifter (Back* "Ida's 9th Birthday") $525.00, Mustard Ladle $209.00, 2-Saltspoons $205.00 Pair, PALM 1-dozen 2-tine Oyster Forks* $789.00 Set, CHIPPENDALE Stuffing spoon $298.00, Oval Dessert Spoons $65.00, COVINGTON,engraved 6 Ice-Cream Forks $195.00Set. TEL.559-627-3182. FAX.559-627-3039. E-mail Silverlyne23@AOL.com
LION – Wendt: Knives – FHAS, 10-Ramekin Fks, Pie Svr, Salad Set, Berry Spn, Preserve Spoon • NEW ART – Durgin: Asparagus Fk, Ice/Nut Spn, Sugar Spn • OLD COLONIAL – Towle: Cracker Scoop, Horseradish Scoop, Footed Cake Plate • OLD FRENCH – Gorham: 2pc Vegetable Serv Set – Fork has unusual cut-out tines, Relish Fork – 7 tines • PARIS – Gorham: Ice Tongs, Asparagus Fk, Cucumber Svr • ST CLOUD – Gorham: Ice Cream Forks, Ice Cream Spns, Master Butter Kn, Pie Svr, Fish Serv Set, Soup Ldl • VIOLET – Whiting: Ice Cream Fks, Petit Four Tong, Sugar Sifter, Tea Strainer CALL TOLL FREE: 1-888-394-2960
MEXICAN STERLING HALLMARK REFERENCE BOOK. “The Little Book of Mexican Silver Trade and Hallmarks,” by Billie Hougart. ISBN 0-9711202-0-X, 152pp illustrated. The only book dedicated solely to marks on 20th century Mexican sterling. Over 1,200 designer, trade and maker marks, 400+ illustrations. www.cicatrix.com Sterling Silver: Hollowware, Jewelry, Souvenir Spoons, Coin Silver and Small Sterling Pieces. E-mail sameyers1@aol.com. SUE ANN MEYERS, PO Box 80533, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, (949) 215-5254.
EARLY AMERICAN COIN SILVER: Prince Albert Dinner Forks (12), Stebbins & Co. (NYC, c. 1840), $240; Porringer, William Moulton IV (Newburyport, MA, c. 1820), $1,100; Sheaf of Wheat Tablespoon, Frederick Marquand (Savannah, GA, c. 1826), $175. Hampton Galleries, (212) 326-0846. Photographs available at: http://www.cyberattic.com/~hamptonsilver/ American coin silver, flatware, hollowware, 18th century, and Southern. www.cyberattic.com/pleasures Past Pleasures Antiques, PO Box 3020, Daphne, AL 36526 PH: (251) 621.3535
ANTIQUE CUPBOARD, INC-The Nations’ largest selection of fine Victorian silver. Offering pattern matching in over 1000 patterns of sterling. • ANTIQUE ENGRAVED – Tiffany: Teaspoon, Salad Set, Sugar Sifter • AVALON-INTER: Saratoga Chip Svr, Soup Ldl, Tea Strainer • BARONIAL OLD – Gorham: Hooded Asparagus Svr • BUTTERCUP – Gorham: Ice Cream Fks, Pea Spoon • CARMEL – Wallace: 11” Round Tray, 14” Round Tray, 2 ea Bon Bon/Nut Dishes, 12 ea Fruit/Dessert Bowls • CHRYSANTHEMUM- Tiffany: Asparagus Fk-Fancy, Ice Spoon, Saratoga Chip Svr, Toast Fk • CONTINENTAL – Jensen: 11- Din Sz Settings • DIAMOND – R&B: 4pc Tea Set • ENGLISH KING – Tiffany: Indiv Asparagus Tong, Cheese Scoop, Fish Serv Set, Ice Tong/Chicken Claw, Punch Ldl, Salad Set • IRIS – Durgin: 6-Ice Cream Spns, 6-Ice Cream Fks, Ice Cream Slice, 6- Salad Fks, Asparagus Fk, Meat Fk, Confection Spn • ITALIAN – Tiffany: Asparagus Tongs-Yoked • LILY – Whiting: Bouillon Ldl, Cheese Scoop, Grapefruit Spns, Ice Tong, Pie Svr • LOUIS XV – Whiting: 3 Handled Trophy – Presented 1898 • MEADOW – Gordon: Hooded Asparagus Svr, Cucumber, Horseradish Scoop, Nut Spoon • MEDAL-
JULY/AUGUST 2006
SILVER CARE PRODUCTS: The finest in silver polishes, polishing cloths and storage bags. Fair prices and prompt shipping. www.collectordepot.net OVERTONS STERLING SILVER: Matching service and large stock of old flatware & silver books. Phone & Fax 949-498-5330. Email edwhiffen@aol.com. SILVERWARE CHESTS: World’s finest stock and custom-made silverware chests. All interiors customized for your sterling. Visit: www.jewelry chests.com/ Silverware_Chests or call Russell Pool Fine Woodworking (888) 731-5100
Wanted: WANTED: Private collector seeks DURGIN ‘DUBARRY’ aka ‘MADAME DUBARRY’ SOUP LADLE Contact Anthony Parker, 410.467.3567. WANTED: Trianon sterling by International Silver ca. 1921. Private collector paying top-dollar for hollowware, plates, trays, candlesticks, compotes, and unique serving pieces. Telephone Edward Smith at (863) 687-4411 Ext. 1207 to discuss what you have, or for catalog pictures to help identify. WANTED: SILVER MINIATURES, sterling or .800, especially household miniatures (furniture, tea equipment, etc.), prefer old, but all inquiries answered. Martines’ Antiques, 516 E. Washington St., Chagrin Falls, Ohio 44022, (440) 247-6421. Wanted: CHINESE EXPORT SILVER 19th and 20th century. Also seeking Gorham Repousse Style Silver Bowls & Trays. Jonathon D. Barber, 858-759-1281. VOLUND SHOP and DODGE silver, copper and jewelry wanted. Bruce Johnson (828) 628-1915. 41
www.douglasilver.com • 847-251-3225
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SILVER MAGAZINE
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World Personalities A conversation with Edward Munves, Jr., silver collector and owner of James Robinson Inc. Located at 480 Park Avenue at 58th Street in New York City, James Robinson Inc. is the only American company that makes their silver flatware entirely by hand. The firm takes pride in the fact that the unique handmade sterling items in flatware, tea and coffee sets, candlesticks and trays are produced in the same manner in which they were crafted in the eighteenth century. Visit their website www.jrobinson.com to view these handmade pieces.
Is it difficult to find craftsmen/artisans that can continue your companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s traditions? Yes, but our Research & Development team is finding and training qualified silversmiths. Starting about the age of sixteen, the young silversmiths go through an apprentice period of five or six years. Currently, we employ eleven artisans/craftsmen from 19 to 65 years of age.
What is your favorite piece that James Robinson Inc. has crafted? My favorite piece is a silver bowl the first and only piece of sterling that I ever made. The bowl is of plain design and I made it in 1957. It was never made for retail - I actually still own it and have it on display.
What makes James Robinson Inc. unique? We are the only firm continuing to make and retail completely handmade sterling flatware. There is no difference between our products and those made in the eighteenth century, except the age. We produce 25 handmade sterling patterns that have a wonderful feel and balance, making eating more enjoyable - they are more beautifully crafted than anything a machine can produce.
James Robinson Inc. storefront. Photo courtesy of James Robinson Inc.
What are the design influences in your handcrafted pieces? Our handmade patterns and pieces are traditional, yet modern looking. They blend nicely in traditional or modern home settings. Primarily, our designs are Classic and Retro with a few modern designs, too.
George III Period Sterling Silver Basket By William Solomon Photo courtesy of James Robinson Inc.
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