Thursday, November 24, 2011

I have 6 Silver Spoons & 1 Sugar Tong in a box with the hallmarks on. What date is it from?

Ok so I bought a little set today and would like to date it. Is anyone able to help?


First mark is a crown then it is the letter E then the letter P and then another crown.


After those it then has NS at the top in a small round oval box. Can anyone help?


Thanks!!!!|||A Crown would normally suggest Sheffield though i'm not sure why there are 2 crowns, EP could suggest Electro Plated Nickel Silver though generally EPNS would be used, you can test this with a magnet,


The NS in an oval box could be the makers mark or initials, but I couldn't find a makers marks of NS that was from Sheffield, I will include some web sites designed to help you identify silver.





Electroplated Silver


The process of electroplating developed in the 1840's and Simply binds a fine layer of silver to the base metal. Again getting an accurate date is not really possible as there are no date letters stamped on the pieces. EPNS or electroplated silver can be identified as it is usually stamped as such, although some times there are no marks. The letters EPNS stand for electroplated nickle silver, and EPNS is the most common stamp found on electroplated silver, but there are many others. Collecting EPNS is can be both inexpensive and rewarding, due to the huge variety of pieces avalible from the 1840's to the present day. You can chose to collect, a type of item: candlesticks, ashtrays, baskets, cutlery, or a style' Art Deco or Art Nouveau EPNS pieces are wondeful and relatively inexpensive. Equally, electroplated silver pieces produced by quality silver smiths are highly sought after and command high prices, these can be identified from the makers mark.

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