A-Team Quote: "I love it when....."

[billjustbill]

Beginning last Friday, when an estate sale opened, I found a silverware box filled with Sterling.

The price was marked: $250

I had my "trusty" lighted L.E.D. 7x power magnifying glass. I looked/inspected long and hard as others looked over my shoulder. Each piece was stamped "Sterling" or 925/1000. It appeared to be a wide assortment of several different patterns with enough of one pattern for a knife-fork-spoon place setting for six. Then, there are some "Bakelite" tableware pieces with foreign markings. I didn't weigh nor count these in the final tally because I don't know what the stamp mean..... I'd like to know about this type of tableware and the markings if you can help.

After getting back home and slowing down my pulse rate, I weighed a sample of each piece/style of silverware for weight and value. Some pieces weigh as little as 10.6 grams all the way up to 53.5 grams each. As you look at my rough written estimated value, you can check my numbers. The silverware's cost of $250 brought $709.46 of pure silver refined out of the silverware with a total of 42.47 Toz. At the time silver was $16.72 Toz, which makes the 99.9 silver cost $5.88 a Toz.... Patent dates of 1893, and names like Linz, Morgan and Haws, J.J. Sweeney, and H. Iversen might make them worth more than spot silver?

Today, I sold some "garage sale" scrap copper and brass faucets, valves, and decorator pieces that I'd picked up over this last year at a cost under $200. The profit from the brass/copper scrap paid for the Sterling Silverware....and I still had more dollars left over than I had spent on the scrap!

Now, the 42.47 troy ounces of $5.88 Toz of silver are really "FREE" ounces of silver.... paid for by someone else's money...

"I love it when a plan comes together!"

Bill

 

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[buzzhead]

Based on the left hand lion stamp I'd venture a guess these are sterling too..


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[JimDon]

A-Team Quote: "I love it when....."

It looks like the Sheffield crown City mark, sterling Lion passant, date letter of 1879, assayers confirmation mark, and the makers Mark HH. Awesome price. Free!

 

[billjustbill]

It looks like the Sheffield crown City mark, sterling Lion passant, date letter of 1879, assayers confirmation mark, and the makers Mark HH. Awesome price. Free!

Thanks JimDon,

When you listed the "Date Letter", my heartbeat jumped! What does one call these markings? Do you use a good website that tells what the markings are?

If the "Left Lion" and the date mark is accurate, then I don't think that "Bakelite" was invented back then..... So, I got my lighted magnifying glass and began looking at all those handles... I see a very fine grain pattern in every piece. The handles appear to be high quality Ivory...

Any ideas of the combined value of sterling and ivory?

Thanks,
Bill

 

[GibH]

Thanks JimDon,

When you listed the "Date Letter", my heartbeat jumped! What does one call these markings? Do you use a good website that tells what the markings are?

If the "Left Lion" and the date mark is accurate, then I don't think that "Bakelite" was invented back then..... So, I got my lighted magnifying glass and began looking at all those handles... I see a very fine grain pattern in every piece. The handles appear to be high quality Ivory...

Any ideas of the combined value of sterling and ivory?

Thanks,
Bill

British Sterling - English Hallmarks, Irish Hallmarks & Scottish Hallmarks

 

[JamieD]

Your makers mark looks to that for be Harrison brothers and Howson of Sheffield between 1849 and 1896. Which fits really well with JimDon's identification of the date letter.

Harrison Bothers & Howson

Looks like some high quality silver and ivory cutlery.

Jamie

 

[JimDon]

Thanks JimDon,

When you listed the "Date Letter", my heartbeat jumped! What does one call these markings? Do you use a good website that tells what the markings are?

If the "Left Lion" and the date mark is accurate, then I don't think that "Bakelite" was invented back then..... So, I got my lighted magnifying glass and began looking at all those handles... I see a very fine grain pattern in every piece. The handles appear to be high quality Ivory...

Any ideas of the combined value of sterling and ivory?

Thanks,
Bill

I use www.925-1000.com