Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20190331-02   $32.50

click for details

Offered is a scarce example of the mark of Washington, DC watchmaker and jeweler Jacob Karr, working in that city between 1857 and 1905; he died in 1917 at the age of 81, and was born in Germany, coming to the U.S. at the age of 11. For at least part of his tenure he was located at 348 Pennsylvania Avenue. Karr is known primarily as a watchmaker in that invented the "celebrated American chronometer"; he also serviced the chronometers and equipment at the Naval Observatory in Washington. This... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20190302-02   $32.50

click for details

Offered is a nicely decorated American coin silver turned-handle spreader or butter knife bearing a manufacturer's mark for James Watts of Philadelphia, circa the 1860s. This piece has engraved decoration and a period engraved script monogram. It measures about 7 1/2 inches in length and weighs about 33 grams. Condition is fair to good, with some wear and scratching consistent with normal use, but no bends, splits or repairs. All in all a nice piece for display or everyday use!

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2385   $650.00

click for details

Massachusetts circa 1790, length 6 1/8 inches, monogrammed MPH (?) in period script with flourishes, weight .42 oz Troy, excellent condition, please see third enlargement for mark.

Grant was a Colonel in the Revolutionary war, a shipowner, and a man of considerable wealth. His work is in the MFA and also at Old Deerfield.

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2384   $7,500.00

click for details

retailed by Palmer and Newcomb, length overall 23 1/2 inches, each coaster eight inches in diameter, gross weight 47 Troy ounces, engraved with an old English "m" and the crest of the Muir family (please see fourth photo). Overall condition is superb, though we will mention that the wooden inserts are later made but period accurate replacements.

Known for his ecclesiastical silver, Cooper's work can be found in major museums, notably an enameled chalice and paten in Boston's Museum of... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2381   $90.00

click for details

Baltimore circa 1860, length five inches, weight .52 Troy ounces, no monogram, excellent condition. Please see third photo for mark. Gilding appears to be original but there is no way to know this, for sure.

This pattern is not common in American silver of the 19th century.

Old Friends  
3741f   $95.00

click for details

Marked "Coin" and with the number "4," but without a maker's identifier, this particular 1860s "Medallion" pattern is illustrated in D. Albert Soeffing's benchmark Silver Medallion Flatware within a grouping that he classifies as "naive" or "primitive."

Soeffing shows a sugar sifter, while this is a 6 1/4" long, just over .8 T. oz., sardine fork.

The "Medallion" is cast and applied, portraying in this case a right facing female figure surrounded by engraved detailing, and on the... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2375   Sold

click for details

height 3 1/2: diameter 3 inches, weight 4.0 Troy ounces, excellent original condition, monogrammed "RCC Dec 30th, 1863".

The engine turned work on this mug is of above average quality.

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
NFS  

click for details

This piece is not for sale, but help me solve the mystery of who made this piece, and I will send you a very nice coin silver spoon in thanks! These twist-arm American coin silver sugar tongs measure about 7 1/8 inches in length and weigh about 49 grams. The maker's mark is a fairly crude SR in a serrated punch. Please take a look at all the pictures. The engraved arms and circular reserve might indicate a Western Pennsylvania or Midwestern, or perhaps Shenandoah Valley origin, but so far... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2370   $125.00

click for details

In what Donald Soeffing has lovingly labeled a "naive" pattern (see Medallion Silver, p. 95); 4 7/8 inches long; weight 2.13 Troy ounces, fine condition; no monogram; applied warrior's head in high relief surrounded by engraving; marked only "COIN 1".

These are far above average in terms of quality, condition, and design.

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20181021-18   $750.00

click for details

Offered is an extraordinary set of four early American coin silver dessert spoons by Washington, DC silversmiths Joseph Bentley and William Wood, circa 1809. This brief partnership, conducted at the Washington Navy Yard, lasted only from December 1808 through the end of August 1809, when it was dissolved by mutual consent. Silver bearing the mark of this partnership is of course extremely rare, and this set of dessert spoons with extremely well preserved maker's marks is very likely the best... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20181021-15   $165.00

click for details

Offered is an excellent pair of Philadelphia coin silver dessert spoons by noted silversmiths Lewis & Smith, circa 1805-11, with a pair of Philadelphia coin silver teaspoons by Edward Lownes of the same date, all bearing the same exceptionally engraved period script monogram. These spoons were located separately many years apart, but originate from the same service and have now been reunited. The dessert spoons measure about 6 7/8 inches in length and the teaspoons about 5 7/8 inches in... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20181021-07   $24.00

click for details

Offered is a very nice American coin silver teaspoon by silversmith Guy Loomis circa 1825-45; it has a clear maker's mark for Loomis and is engraved with period script initials "LL" for the original owner. By style, it could date either to Loomis' time in Sheffield, Massachusetts (circa 1816-37), or to his Erie period, from 1837 to 1874. This piece measures about 5 13/16 inches in length and weighs about 14 grams. Condition is excellent overall, with minor signs of wear from normal use, but... Click for details

Old Friends  
3659f   $105.00

click for details

Measuring 7 3/4" long and weighing 2.0 T. oz., this fork has rounded shoulders and three wide and lengthy tines, the outer two of which are splayed.

The form is uncommon and hence of uncertain function. It may be a spinach or toast/bread fork, or for another purpose yet. The proportions assure it is definitely original and not adapted from another piece as, for example, most potato forks are derived from dinner forks.

The maker was George Sharp, Philadelphia, as indicated by his "lion, S,... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2364   Sold

click for details

length 12 1/2 inches, weight 1.04 Troy ounces, monogrammed "T" (obverse, see second photo), excellent condition, unmarked.

The attractively engraved shield in bowl lends this an elegance which will uplift your entire martini routine.

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
1388044   Sold

click for details

New York circa 1855, length 8 inches, weight 10.41 Troy ounces (avg. 1.75 oz. T each), excellent condition, monogrammed "F.E.M." in period script; see third enlargement, marked with his trademark and J. Cook incuse.

One could spend a substantial number of hours searching through design patents looking for the original name of this pattern, and come up empty handed. Then again, one might find an exact date, and "design for the handle of a spoon." Either way, we find this early die struck... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2352   Sold

click for details

Baltimore circa 1850. Length 9 1/8 inches, weight 1.71 Troy ounces, attractive floral engraving, monogrammed "Clintonia."

We've checked the big bad auction site, and can't find anything similar there for under one hundred mighty dollars, so if you're a reseller, there's a good chance that you'll be able to make enough on this to buy a minor league sports team, or at the very least a small yacht.