Fine early tablespoon by one of the rarest Southern makers, Martin Noxon of Edenton, North Carolina. It has a pointed handle and dates from about 1805. It is in excellent condition, measuring 8 7/16 inches and weighing 1.68 troy ounces. It also has a beautifully engraved, elegant script monogram on the handle. I have also noted that the hallmark is the only one I know which reads the same upside down...

Full title is: American Silver 1655-1825 in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts Boston by Kathryn C. Buhler. This two volume hardcover book was published in 1972 and came in a slipcase. The individual volumes never had dust jackets. This is an essential reference work if one is a serious collector of or dealer in early American silver. The illustration shows the front and back of the slipcase. This is a crisp new copy that has never been used.

Set of six teaspoons, dating from 1800-1810, by William Simes (1773-1824) of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. They are coffin ended with beautifully executed script monograms and interesting double roulette drops on the back. Each is marked with Simes' punch (mark "a" on page 382 of Marks of American Silversmiths in the Ineson-Bissell Collection by Louise Conway Belden). Length is 5 11/16 inches. Condition is very good: I would almost be tempted to say the spoons were never used...

Early S. Kirk serving or stuffing spoon bearing the S. K. and 11 oz punches, indicating manufacture close to 1830. The spoon, in the fiddle thread pattern, has a unicorn crest and a handsome shell bowl. Crests are unusual on American silver; in this case, research indicates it may be that of the Preston family of Baltimore, which has been prominent for three centuries. The spoon is 10 3/8 inches long and weighs 3 ounces and 3 pennyweights (Troy)...

One of the most desirable New York Federal silversmiths, Daniel Van Voorhis, made these tablespoons circa 1785. They have dragon head crests (crests are fairly rare on American silver) and the best Van Voorhis hallmark (initials with full last name and eagle), and good slashed drops. They are in excellent condition with virtually no tipwear evident. They are 8 7/8 inches long and weigh 4 ounces and 2+ pennyweights (Troy). More photos are available and can be emailed on request.

“Elias Davis of Newburyport, Massachusetts, remains an elusive figure, mentioned in only a few documents,” writes Patricia E. Kane in her monumental and definitive tome, “Colonial Massachusetts Silversmiths and Jewelers.” Davis was born in Newburyport in 1746 and died there in 1783. Some references list his name as Edward Davis, or posit that there were two Newburyport silversmiths named Davis, but Kane thinks this is an error...

Checklist for 1988 exhibit celebrating the gift to Yale by the Kossack family of American silver encompassing at the time almost 4,400 objects dating from about 1720 to 1890. It included 1,965 tea, 774 table, 207 dessert, 199 salt and 49 mustard and other small spoons; 467 sugar shells and tongs; 269 ladles; 151 pieces of holloware; 126 forks; 46 knives; 43 spectacles; 36 serving pieces, and 35 pieces of jewelry representing the work of approximately 1,100 silversmiths...

HARDCOVER Christie's Catalogue for "Magnificent Regency Silver and Silver-Gilt" from the collection of Alan and Simone Hartman. Useful for reference. Sale was held in New York on October 20, 1999, Includes interesting essays on the Regency and luxury retailers of the Regency period. Price of $15 includes free media mail shipping within the USA.