Catalog: Silver: Coin Silver: Serving Pieces

A major mid 19th century silver manufacturer, Boston's Farrington & Hunnewell produced a number of die cut patterns as well as an extensive array of engraved designs.

This 6" long, 1.3 T. oz., shell bowl, sauce or cream ladle, is an especially fine example of the later form.

It has a gracefully arched, broad, "Reverse Tipt" handle that is bright and diamond cut on the front in a floral, leaf, and swag design.

There is a central reserve area that is engraved in a leaf script "W" monogram...

Measuring 7" long and weighing not quite 1.0 T. oz., this preserve or jelly spoon traces to Boston, circa 1860.

It is stamped "· F&H ·" for Farrington & Hunnewell, along with "Pure-Coin," which is a characteristically New England regional term designating the silver content.

The arched handle has an anthemion-shaped end suggestive of its circa 1865 Greek Revival period, which along with the main shank, is finely engraved in an intricate leaf and scroll design...

This 8 3/8" long, 2.0 T. oz., item is a superb example of mid 19th Boston silver work in terms of form, execution, and condition.

An Olive pattern, which was particularly popular in Boston in the period and produced with slight variation by several makers, it is marked "lion, F&H, bust," for manufacturer "Farrington & Hunnewell."

It is a hotcake, aka pancake or waffle, lifter...

Founded in Providence, Rhode Island, by William B. Fessenden (who had a prior working history in Boston with various and New York City with Whiting) in 1858, the firm that bore his name was one of numerous silver manufacturers located in the Providence to North Attleboro, Massachusetts corridor, all anchored by Gorham. Given this concentration of industry, there was a body of skilled workers in the area available to Fessenden, which enabled it to produce quality items from its onset...

Dating circa 1840, this 6 1/2" long, .7 T. oz., Tipt aka Fiddle Tipt spoon is stamped "F...

Made by the mid 19th century Boston silver manufacturer Farrington & Hunnedwell, this 5 15/16" long, .77 T. oz., coin silver sugar spoon was retailed by Worcester jeweler Benjamin Goddard, whose name, along with the maker's "F&H" mark, appears on the handle backside.

Very much in the manner of its 1860s period, and engagingly so, it has a twisted stem and a flat, shaped-edge, handle that is bright cut and wriggle work engraved in a period design...

Relative large, this coin silver master butter knife measures 7 3/4" long and weighs a commensurately heavy 1.3 T. oz.

Elegantly designed, it has a lengthy, slender, handle that has high, double swell, chamfered fins off the blade. The end is fiddle shaped and features a raised shell motif.

The blade is somewhat short at 2 7/8" long and wide at 1 1/8". It has a blunt end and curved upper edge with a notch toward the tip...

This pair of coin silver tongs are generously sized at 6 1/4" long and weigh 1.2 T. oz.

Each arm is stamped "F. [for Foster] Tinkham," born in Middleboro, Massachusetts, in 1803, and documented working in New York City in 1840, the approximate date of this piece, as a jeweler and watchmaker. He had returned to Massachusetts by 1855.

The arms are Fiddle shaped, which is a style consistent with their period...

This 8 1/8" long, 1.77 T. oz., coin silver piece stands apart for several reasons.

One distinguishing aspect is the combination of maker and retailer.

It is stamped with the "eagle, thistle, harp" mark of Philadelphia's Taylor & Lawrie." Catherine Hollan in Philadelphia Silver notes "they [T&L] advertised they had manufactured for Bailey & Kitchen then for Bailey & Co. for twenty years . . ...

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, ...

Marked "Patent 1861," "Beaded" is one of Gorham's earliest line patterns. It was produced for a considerable period of time and made in both coin and sterling silver. This example is marked "Coin," so dates no later than 1868, the year Gorham went to sterling.

It is a large, 9 1/4" long, approximately 2.5 T. oz. ice cream server.

It has an oval blade with two ribs in the interior, notched shoulders, a beveled edge, and a gold washed upper surface. This is shallowly concave and more o...

An early example of Gorham's Cottage, which was issued in 1861 to a coin silver standard and continued in production for many years through and beyond the company's transition to sterling in 1868, this 9" long, approximately 2.5 T. oz., ice cream spade is marked "Patent 1861," "Coin," and "Shreve Stanwood & Co.," for the Boston firm that eventually became that city's renowned "Shreve, Crump & Low."

A relatively plain pattern, this is embellished on the handle front with a delicately en...

An early line pattern first issued in 1861 to a coin silver standard, "Cottage" continued in production for many years, through Gorham's transition to sterling in 1868.

This 7" long, T. oz., preserve spoon is an early example marked "Patent 1861" and "Coin."

The bowl is shell form with a scalloped and dotted edge.

There is a feathered script "HSS" monogram delicately engraved sideways on the handle front.

This is in outstanding estate condition, absent polishing wear or damage and s...

Introduced in 1861, and initially made to a coin silver standard then continued in production beyond the conversion to sterling in 1868, Gorham's Grecian features a solid tubular stem capped with an elaborated anthemion or palmette.

This 7 1/2" long, 1.9 T. oz., gravy ladle is an early piece, marked "Coin," along with "Patent 1861."

The handle backside is engraved with an "H.A.B" monogram in Old English lettering.

The bowl is large, 2 3/4" by 2 1/4" by 1" deep, helmet-shaped, has ...

One of Gorham's earliest full line patterns, Grecian was produced to a coin silver standard beginning in 1861 and then continued in sterling from 1868 onward.

This example is marked only "Patent 1861" and with Gorham's "lion, anchor, G" emblem absent a sterling designation, thus indicating it is coin.

It is also the largest iteration of a ladle in this line and is for soup. In keeping with mid 19th century practice for this sort of item, it measures a massive 14" long and weighs 6.1...

One of Gorham's earliest full line patterns, references date it to 1865 although this 7 3/4" long, 1.4 T. oz., solid silver master butter knife is stamped "Patent 1867," indicating a later date and situating it just before the company's conversion to a sterling standard in 1868.

Other marks on this include Gorham's "lion, anchor, G" emblem, and the name of the retailer, Philadelphia's "Geo. H. Bechtel."

"Ionic" is a Greek Revival design that incorporates a central rosette with a stylized a...

This weighty, 3.0 T. oz., 9" long, c. 1865 solid silver pie server, aka pie knife, is marked for the Brockton, Massachusetts jeweler "Gurney Brothers" ("Bro's." as stamped).

Also marked "Pure-Coin," this doubtlessly has Boston origins, likely made by Farrington and Hunnewell, based on the design.

It has an Old English, i.e. downturned, rounded end, Reverse Tipt handle.

The 4 1/2" long by 2 3/4" at the widest, blade is unusually shaped, with a double scalloped edge, a raise...

Measuring 6 1/4" long and weighing .64 T. oz., this sugar spoon is a charming period piece.

The Reverse Tipt handle is bright cut engraved in a wispy leaf design with training stems that encircle a script letter "LHN" monogram.

It also has an usual form bowl with scalloped ends and interior paneling, all finished in a pale gold wash.

It is stamped Harry Raynes for the Lowell, Massachusetts, jeweler working from 1865 into at least the 1880s, and at times in collaboration wi...