Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230305-01   On Hold

click for details

Offered is a very fine pair of early 19th Century American coin silver dessert spoons by noted Philadelphia silversmith John McMullin, circa 1825-41. Please click on the first picture to be able to review all of the pictures. These spoons measure about 7 1/8 inches in length, and weigh a total of 58 grams. They are initialed MC over SWC in period script, and have good clear maker's marks on the back. Condition is very good, with a few tiny dings to the bowl of each, and no splits or repairs.... Click for details

Old Friends  
5235f   $38.00

click for details

Modestly sized at 1 3/4" diameter, 1 3/8" wide, and weighing just over .5 T. oz., this napkin ring could have been part of a child's set (along with a mug, plate, and/or porringer for example), although not necessarily.

It has a three lobed body, the top and bottom ones of which are embossed in an Ivy and Vine pattern.

Again, this naturalistic portraiture is pastoral, almost naive, in its theme and could suggest the innocence of a child.

The interior is finished in a bright gold... Click for details

Old Friends  
5231f   $85.00

click for details

A matching group in a Tipt aka Fiddle Tipt pattern, three of these four (two shown) teaspoons measure 5 1/2" long and one measures 5 3/4". The three collectively weigh 1.6 T. oz., and the single one .6 T. oz.

They are of archival interest for both the maker and the retailer.

Stamped with Whiting's "winged lion and W" emblem and "Coin," they are very early examples of a major 19th century silver manufacturer's modest origins.

Well-crafted and precisely-formed items with... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230227-01   Sold

click for details

Offered is a nice heavy Southern coin silver table spoon bearing the mark of noted Natchez, Mississippi silversmith and jeweler Louis Emile Gustave Profilet, born in 1801 in France, and died in 1868 in Natchez. This tablespoon has no monogram or sign of erasure. It measures about 8 3/8 inches in length and weighs a good 65 grams. It bears manufacturer's marks for Wm. Gale & Sons and the year 1856, and features Emile Profilet's maker's mark in a rectangular punch. Condition of this piece is... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2527   $250.00

click for details

top diameter 4 1/2; height 2 5/8 inches, weight 6.10 Troy ounces, no monogram, excellent condition.

Marked as shown in second enlargement.

Old Friends  
5224f   $175.00

click for details

Note: while the above image shows six of these forks, this listing is actually for eight identical, all original, pieces.

Made by Frank Whiting, this set of forks is marked with the company's "W in a circle" emblem, "Sterling," and the number "2" on the backsides.

Measuring 5 3/4" long each and weighing 4.0 T. oz. the group, they are oyster, shrimp, or seafood cocktail forks.

Each piece has three tines, one of which is hooked, all joined to cupped heels with subtly notched... Click for details

Old Friends  
5214f   $22.00

click for details

Offered in both sterling silver and silver plate, Harlequin was a floral series issued by Reed & Barton and generally made in a variety of generally smaller items.

These seven, 4" long, 2.35 T. oz. the group, coffee or demitasse spoons are early pieces marked with the company's "eagle, R, lion" (later items are stamped "Reed & Barton") along with "Sterling."

Cast rather than die struck, they are highly textured, possess intricate detail, and show a soft gray finish on the silver.... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230212-02   $37.50

click for details

Offered is a very fine and heavy Chinese Export Silver (CES) fiddle thread and shell pattern teaspoon by noted Canton silversmith Wongshing, working circa 1820-1860. This piece measures about 5 1/2 inches in length and weighs a heavy 33 grams. It has a period engraved Gothic monogram and a clear, well-struck set of maker's marks. Condition is very good overall, with minor wear but not splits or repairs. All in all a great example of Canton silver from the Chinese Export era!

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230211-01   $65.00

click for details

Offered is a good and scarce Scottish provincial silver dessert spoon or large teaspoon by William Byres, whose biographical details appear below. This piece is engraved "ARM" in period script. It measures about 6 5/8 inches in length and weighs about 19 grams. The maker's marks and the Gothic "Q" mark are well-struck and legible. Condition overall is fair, with some wear from normal use and a shallow dent to the bowl, and a little scratching on the upper handle. There are no splits or... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230208-01   Sold

click for details

Offered is a scarce pair of New Orleans coin silver teaspoons by noted silversmith Anthony Rasch, dating to the 1830s or 1840s and marked A.RASCH and N.ORLEANS with one of the "N"s backwards. These spoons are in the fiddle and shell pattern and are quite heavy for their size. They measure about 5 3/4 inches in length or a little under, and weigh a total of 46 grams. They each have worn but legible marks and a worn period script monogram. Condition overall is fair, with some wear and signs... Click for details

Cliff Nunn - Antique Silver and Decorative Arts  
20230206-01   Sold

click for details

Offered is a very rare set of four Philadelphia coin silver teaspoons, dating to the 1814-25 period, with a mark of R.WILSON in a rectangular punch. This mark is undocumented in Cathy Hollan's "Philadelphia Silversmiths", but is very likely the mark used by Robert Wilson Jr. from the time he began as a silversmith in 1814 until he joined his brother in partnership in 1825 when his father, Robert Wilson, Sr., passed away. Alternatively (but less likely), the mark could have been used by the... Click for details

Old Friends  
5203f   $345.00

click for details

This 8" long, 2.3 T. oz., solid silver sugar sifter is high Victorian in style. It is also a study in the silversmithing art.

Hallmarked for London, 1875-76, sterling, with a Queen's duty head, and "HH" for maker Henry Holland (later Holland, Aldwinckle & Slater), it carries considerable provenance. Holland and the subsequent firm were recognized as one of the most significant English silver manufacturers of their time.

This is artful in multiple ways.

First to be noted is the overall... Click for details

Old Friends  
5202f   $46.00

click for details

A 6" long, just under 1.0 T. oz., item, this ladle has a bowl that measures 2" in diameter and is 1/2" deep.

It is a cream or sauce ladle in Whiting's Heraldic, which apropos of the pattern name, is dominated by the image of a medieval helmet set at the top of the handle. The remainder of the design incorporates a dense array of high relief, scrolling acanthus leaves.

The bowl on this is the fancier of two that Whiting used for this line. It has a scalloped rim and raised, leafy... Click for details

Old Friends  
5198f   On Hold

click for details

Designed and introduced by silversmith Albert Coles, New York City, in the mid 19th century, the flatware pattern Jenny Lind met with success in the marketplace and was in time produced by other manufacturers in addition to Coles.

This 8" long, approximately 1.6 T. oz., coin silver place spoon (tablespoon in today's usage) is an early example, stamped with Coles' three part emblem and the name of Rochester, New York retailer "[Elias S. and Jacob] Ettenheimer."

It is also engraved in... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2526   $450.00

click for details

Gardner, MA circa 1921, Craftsman Arthur Hartwell, length 7 3/4 inches across the handle, weight 9.51 Troy ounces, some scratches as shown in fourth enlargement but very good overall condition.

Let's answer the most obvious question first: Is this the same family whose name graces a certain ravine in New Hampshire's White Mountains which is beloved by back country skiers in search of an adrenaline rush? Yes indeed it is. Edward Tuckerman, Jr., a lichen expert for whom it was named,... Click for details

Old Friends  
5196f   $235.00

click for details

An elaborate figural design ssued in 1891, the central motif of Dominick & Haff's Cupid is a winged cherub. While always a cupid's face and portion of the upper torso, there is variation in the specific portraiture from piece to piece.

Overall, the pattern is rococo in style, featuring a series of scrolls and leafy elements arrayed in an asymmetrical manner.

This example, a 10" long, heavy at 3.9 T. oz., solid silver ice cream knife is one of the largest and most commanding serving... Click for details