A magnificent Cape silver gravy (also called basting or serving) spoon, in the Kings pattern, double struck with diamond heel. It has a lovely weight and is very good quality, this is one of the most substantial Cape silver spoons we have seen, and is suitable for regular use - in fact a spoon anyone would enjoy using. The hallmarks are very clear, makers mark LT for Lawrence Twentyman, and pseudo English hallmarks (leopards head, duty mark, date letter a and lion) - Welz mark 135, but in a different order. Twentyman was the most prolific of all Cape silversmiths, he had the first shop on Heerengracht (now Adderley Street) with a shop window. He worked between 1818 and 1837.

An extremely rare and unusual Cape silver Napkin (serviette) holder. The holder has an arm that hooks into a buttonhole, and a clamp that is opened or closed with a sliding ring. The clamp end is decorated in a very crude shell, and the sliding ring is crudely banded. This item could be unique, made by special commission, as none of the Cape silver reference books describe napkin holders. The hallmark is very clear (DBD between two stars, mark 44 in Welz). Dominique Badouin du Moulin was a Belgian from Mons (Bergen), who worked as a silversmith in the Cape between 1818 and 1833 (Welz, Cape Silver). He married the sister of silversmith Jan Beyleveld.

Early provincial waiter of good gauge and in outstanding condition. The waiter has a shell and scroll rim, lion paw feet and an interesting Stag crest. The hallmarks are exceptionally clear, even the castle windows are clear in the town mark! The base is also scratch engraved with the weight, being 7.2 oz pnt. John Kirkup assumed control of the family business in 1753 when his father dies, he retired in 1774.

Typical early Georgian small octagonal caster by a well known maker. Thomas Bamford was a specialist caster maker, whose apprentices included Samuel Wood, who also became a prolific specialist caster maker. Bamford's address was the interestingly named Gutter Lane. The caster is clearly hallmarked, both on the base and on the sleeve of the lid.

A Dutch silver miniature kettle, circa 1725, by the prolific Frederik I van Strant, who made a large number of miniature silver objects in the course of his career (Houart, Miniature Silver Toys). A very similar kettle also by van Strant can be seen in figure 69 of the book described above. Unfortunately this kettle has lost its original lid, this lid is a replica copy of the lid depicted in the book. The makers mark is very clear, the Amsterdam town mark partially visible, and the assay scrape is also present. An almost identical miniature silver kettle, also by Frederik van Strant circa 1725, is depicted in the book "Tall and Small, Antique Dutch Silver Miniatures" by Aardewerk Antiques of The Hague, pg 153, image 346. We highly recommend this book.

A set of 6 Cape Silver tablespoons in the Fiddle pattern, with initials CIH over WAM. The initials CIH are older, the have more wear than the WAM initials, which would have been added later after a change of ownership of the spoons. All 6 spoons have excellent hallmarks, makers mark FW with the "Cape Stub" pseudo English hallmarks (see article on the Cape Stub in our articles section).

A Cape silver snuff box by Daniel Beets, oval in shape with a three quarter hinged lid, which is well made as it is perfectly flush with the lid, and a small but practical thumbpiece. It is a pleasing design for a snuff box, has a very nice feel in the hand, easy to take in and out of a pocket. This is a fairly rare design for Cape silver snuff boxes, most were rectangular, or had a protruding hinge. This box has been well used, as can be seen from the considerable wear to the engraving, and has been repaired more than once in its lifetime. The lid has remnants of engraved wreath surrounding owners initials and date, no longer legible. The box also has 3 worn engraved stars, typically Cape in style, one either side and on the fixed portion of the lid. The interior has original gilding, a lovely golden yellow colour, quite well preserved on lid and hinge, but only some still present in base and sides, the rest has been lost during repairs. The base shows signs of repairs and splits, so has been re-attached at ...

A set of Cape silver tableforks in the Fiddle pattern, by the well known Cape silversmith Johannes Combrink. The forks are engraved with the initials "FtW", which is attractively engraved. The forks are good quality and a pleasing weight, they are suitable for use. The hallmarks on all 6 forks are clear. Four forks have makers mark IC only (Welz mark 31 in Cape Silver), two have makers mark IC between 2 ladder devices (Welz mark 33). Johannes Combrink was born in the Cape in 1781, he married Aurelia Lotter in 1807 and died in 1853. He worked from Dorp Street.

A rare Cape silver Basting (or Serving) spoon in the Old English pattern, this is a good quality spoon suited for use as a serving spoon. The spoon has a colonial feel, it has an unusual rectangular shaped drop, so was probably made before 1820 when English silversmiths arrived in the Cape and influenced styles. The spoon is quite plain, no crests or initials, but it is engraved "IV" on the back of the stem. This engraving is original and quite crude (typically colonial), perhaps done by the owner himself, possibly indicating it was once part of a set. The hallmarks are excellent, makers mark IC between 2 devices (flowers?), mark 27 in "Cape Silver" by Welz. Johan Combrink was a prolific and well regarded Cape silversmith, he worked between 1814 and 1853, and was based in Dorp street.

A set of 6 Georgian silver dessert forks in the Old English pattern, made by the delightfully named Samuel Godbehere, with his partner Edward Wigan. The forks are good quality and a pleasing weight. The forks have a beautifully engraved family crest of a sun in splendour, very intricate with about 50 sunbursts, this is quality engraving. The sun in splendour crest was used by a number of families, all assistance welcome. All 6 forks have clear hallmarks, including makers mark SG/EW which was used between 1787 and 1800.

A Cape silver Basting spoon in the Fiddle pattern, with original owners engraved initials LIA in script. The spoon is a pleasing weight, and is in excellent condition, this spoon has not seen much use at all. The tip of the bowl has a strong lip, this is more a Continental than English feature, and the long rounded drop is also more Continental in style than English. The hallmarks are excellent, makers mark JT and 3 English pseudo hallmarks, duty mark, date letter a and leopards head town mark (Welz mark 121, Cape Silver). John Townsend (1800-1875) was an interesting character, descibed by Heller as one of the top 5 Cape silversmiths. He arrived in the Cape in 1821 on the ship Duke of Marlboro, and was involved in a number of businesses, including a hotel and auctioneering business, in addition to being goldsmith, silversmith, jeweller and watchmaker. He was embroiled in a number of court cases, mostly due to bad debt, in 1849 he stated "insufficient means to support his 10 children". He moved to Okiep in Nam...

A lovely pair of Scottish silver Hanoverian pattern tablespoons, made in 1772 by Daniel Ker in Edinburgh. The spoons have a narrow rounded stem, with flattened end with noticeable rib and turn up end, and they have a double drop. Both spoons are engraved with a family crest of a cockerel under motto "Sine Metu", translated "Without Fear", this is the motto of the Jameson family (this motto is present on every bottle of Jameson's whiskey). Both spoons are bottom marked, and all 4 hallmarks on both spoons are clearly legible, which is not often the case with bottom marked spoons. The hallmarks include makers mark DK, Edinburgh castle, Scottish thistle and date letter Gothic S for 1772.

A lovely set of 5 18th century Dutch silver Hanoverian pattern 3 pronged forks, with a matching 6th fork made slightly later by another maker, we assume to replace a loss shortly after they were made. The forks are quite plain and elegant, with turn down ends, and a prominent drop and pip, the "Amsterdam Lofje", characteristic of spoons and forks from Amsterdam. The forks have no engraving or monograms. All the forks have makers mark HK in script for Hendrik Kamerlingh II, who worked between 1730 and 1776, and Amsterdam town mark (crown above 3 crosses). The 6th fork has makers mark HO for Hendrik Overhulsman, who worked between 1790 and 1811, also with Amsterdam town mark. All 6 makers and town marks are slightly squashed, this is usual on 18th century bottom marked flatware as the spoon maker would have re-hammered the stems after return from the assay office, as the stem would bulge when the marks were struck. All 6 forks have an additional hallmark, V in shield under a crown, this is a Dutch tax mark used...

A fabulous pair of Cape silver Old English pattern tablespoons, of the very best quality and condition, by one of the top Cape silversmiths. The spoons have strong tips, more Continental than English in style, and an elongated oval drop. The hallmarks are very clear on both, makers mark .JCL in rectangular punch between 2 seven petalled floral devices (a combination of marks 76 and 78 in the book Cape Silver by Welz, page 150). the .JCL mark is for Johannes Casparus Lotter I, who worked between 1766 and circa 1810, he was succeeded by his son (also Johannes Casparus Lotter II, 1811-1823) who used a JCL* mark, accompanied with the 7 petal floral devices. This combination of punches by different silversmiths is not unusual in the Cape, where punches were handed down and re-used. Johannes Casparus Lotter I produced excellent quality work (better than his son, according to David Heller, History of Cape Silver). The Lotter family produced over 12 Cape silversmiths between 1766 and 1879, their family tree is shown ...

A rare pair of Cape silver tablespoons in the Old English thread pattern, we have only noted 2 examples of Cape silver in this pattern in the body of literature. The spoons are the usual Old English shape, but with a double thread around the edge, this is double struck (occurs on the front and back of the spoons). Both spoons are engraved with original owners initials IM in script. Both spoons are hallmarked with makers mark IC, the marks are slightly blurred, we assume the punch was worn when they were struck. The spoons are also hallmarked with the "Cape Stub", 4 pseudo - English hallmarks (lion passant, date letter, duty mark and leopard's head) struck mechanically in a fly press (see article on Cape Stub in "The Finial, 2007, and in the articles tab above), these marks have some wear but are still clearly visible. We believe these spoons were made by hand, you can see differences in how the thread has been applied, and the 2 spoons, whilst the same size, have very different weights (one is 74 grams, the s...

A rare pointed terminal cape silver konfyt fork (preserve fork), that matches the celebrated Cape silver lemoen lepels (orange spoons). The fork has 4 tines, pointed terminal, and traditional Cape bright cut prick engraving, two wavy lines around the edge of the handle. The spoon is clearly hallmarked with makers mark IL (Welz mark 71 in Cape Silver), and also has original owners stamped mark HB. This fork matches S11467, the matched set of konfyt fork and lemoen lepel. Jan Lotter, who was regarded by Heller in his book "History of Cape Silver" as "a highly skilled craftsman", only worked for 4 years between 1813 and 1817, so he probably died young. He made most of the prized Cape silver "lemoenlepels" (orange spoons) known to exist today, and know we know he made matching forks. He worked from 22 Keerom Street, Cape Town.

A collection of 3 18th century miniature toy or snuff spoons, all 3 with rattails dating circa 1720. The first is by David Clayton, this spoon is 5.9 cm long and weighs 1 gramme, makers mark only (gothic script DC, Grimwade 452). This spoon is dainty with long elegant handle, and has character, it is well used, scratches, kinks to handle and bowl, but no repairs. The second is possibly William Scarlett, with clear lion passant and partial marks mark ? /S, this spoon is 8.2 cm, weighs 4 grammes, slight kinks to bowl but otherwise good condition. The third spoon has no hallmarks, it has an old repair halfway down the handle, with inserted silver bar joining the 2 halves, this spoon is 8.8 cm and weighs 4 grammes. Even without hallmarks and with an old repair, we really like this spoon. David Clayton is perhaps the most famous English silversmith who specialized in miniatures, and to quote from Wikimedia - "David Clayton was a renowned English silversmith from London active from around 1697. His work is exhibite...

A collection of 3 18th century Miniature snuff or toy spoons in the Hanoverian pattern, possibly all by the same maker Christian Hillan. The first spoon is hallmarked with makers mark CH under a star, we believe this to be the mark of Christian Hillan, Grimwade mark 326, this mark is well struck but slightly squashed by the small size of the handle. The spoon has a long drop which we date to circa 1740, the spoon is 7.7 cm long and weighs 5 grammes, the quality and condition of this spoon is excellent, we really like this spoon. The next 2 spoons are a pair, both are engraved on the back with script owners initials IJ, these spoons are possibly slightly later in date as they have no drop. They are 7.5 cm in length, and weigh 5 grammes combined. Both are in good condition, with very slight kink in the bowls. Both are hallmarked twice with the same makers mark, this is only partially visible, script letters, possibly CH for Christian Hillan (Grimwade 333), but it could also be John Hugh Le Sage (Grimwade 1681) ...

A Cape Silver lemoen lepel, (orange spoon), in good condition, and with very clear makers mark. This spoon is typical of the Cape lemoen lepels, with pointed terminal and bowl, the bowl itself eye shaped and quite deep. The spoon has typical Cape engraving, with a 4 petal flower and wrigglework along the edges of the handles. It also has a distinctive V joint connecting handle to bowl. The spoon has a slight copper tinge, this is exaggerated in the photographs. The IC makers mark is well struck and clear (Welz mark 32 with canted corners). Welz describes orange spoons as"probably the most attractive type of spoon made at the Cape, derived from Dutch spoons", pg 95. He also notes that all known examples are by Cape born silversmiths of the early 19th century (so not made by the more prolific English immigrants who arrived after 1815). As far as we are aware, only Jan Lotter and Johannes combrink made lemoen lepels, probably between 1800 and 1815. Note - this spoon matches the pair S 1922 and single S 1923.

A rare pair of Cape silver tablespoons in the Old English pattern, engraved with the crest of the Cape Regiment. The spoons are engraved "CAPE.REG" above a bugle, suspended from a shamrock shape rope knot. This bugle was used as a crest for English Light regiments, currently still used by the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (lightbobs). As is often the case with regimental silver, these spoons have been well used (and well polished), so the crest is worn, one is better than the other. Both spoons have clear Cape silver hallmarks, anchor, IC, anchor, mark 22 in Cape Silver by Welz, used by Johannes Combrink. The Cape Regiment was formed in 1795, and consisted of Khoisan and Coloured men under white officers, headquartered in Simonstown. In 1817 it was renamed the Cape Corps, it remained in existence until 1926. Major Matthew Richmond, a New Zealand Colonial administrator and politician, served with the Cape Regiment in 1817, so may have used these spoons. (note - we have 2 sets of these spoons)....