| INDEX | ALL SILVER |
| DESCRIPTION | Magnificent and rare suite of three antique English Georgian solid sterling silver casters in wonderfully good and original condition. The clearly hand-hammered insert for one is a subject of some debate. The purpose is to reduce the flow from the caster and it is my belief that these were made later, probably as improved mechanical milling enabled condiments to be ground finer. If Samuel had made it I think he would have given it a less rustic finish, marked it with his mark and was legally required to hallmark it too. Some say that as the blank is fixed into the top, an integral part, it must be original to the piece. To those people I say "your liner is stuck with old condiment, silver polish and is likely wedged by dents too, try a soak in warm, soapy water". Such an original suite of three with fully matching hallmarks and crest are rare. To find a suite in this fantastic original condition is perhaps a once in a lifetime event. I know that I had been looking for over twenty years to find examples this good. The fluted decoration to the lower body only and finishing below the girdle and not touching it is exactly right. I see so many with later decoration that goes right up to the girdle and continues throughout the upper body too. In particularly bad examples of Victorian overly exuberant clobbering I have see a ring of decoration to the pedestal bases too. A nice feature of construction can be seen from beneath, a rather thick silver tube within the foot. This adds much strength but the main purpose was to enable Samuel to align the separate sections before soldering. It has worked perfectly, all pieces stand without lean and although the solder within appears substantial and a bit messy the result on the outside is pure genius. You will need a good lens to find the joins and even then you will struggle if you do not know exactly where to look. Samuel's skill is breathtaking. |
| SILVERSMITH | Samuel Wood, specialist caster maker from a long line of the same. Beautifully struck marks perfectly preserved. The tops are all clearly and correctly marked according to the convention of the day with lion passant and Samuel's mark only. |
| DATE or HALLMARK | 1755 |
| ASSAY OFFICE | London |
| WEIGHT in GRAMS | 575 |
| HEIGHT inc. finial | master 7 ¼", 186mm subservients 6", 151mm |
| SILVER STANDARD | ·925 sterling silver |
| CONDITION | excellent, easily the finest suite available to humankind today and complete with original horses' bust crest to please those interested in such beasts |
select any image to enlarge
| SOLD |
| Price £1695 |
| item number m8981 |
| Available Silver Casters |
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