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Hi, Probably London 1797/8. The "B" is the date letter & the head is the duty mark. Can't quite make out whether it is clipped or not, (little pieces cut out of bottom & one side of the duty mark). If not clipped then dated 29th May 1797 to 5th July 1797. If it is clipped then date...

Hi, I have a pair of sugar tongs & am unable to identify them with certainty. I have had some people comment as follows (names omitted to protect the innocent!): "My suspicion is James Heatherington of Newcastle (Gill page 116) , but I would class it as a possible rather a probable" &q...

Hi, Can't be certain but I also think it is London 1749. The jagged mark is the Lion Passant. Note there is no duty mark so it is pre-1784. I also go along with dognose - most likely candidate James Wilks - but like dognose, I suggest you can't be certain - there are several makers with similar mark...

Hi, Chester Shield - Yes Lion Passant - Yes - Sterling silver Nothing wrong with the maker's mark being apparently upside down. The maker's mark will have been punched separately from the hallmarks. The marks look like Chester 1892 - no duty mark so after 1890. There was a Chester registered watch-m...

Hi, Definitely George Smith III. If you have a look at http://www.silversugartongs.com/london/George%20Smith%20III/GS3%20makers%20marks.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; there is a page of his marks. This particular mark is from around 1780 & my view is that the date letter you ...

Hi, You may find that the maker's mark is actually the other way up and it may be "SH" for Soloman Hougham. Date letters - could be "C" for 1798, "G" for 1802 or "c" for 1818. The sequence of the punches may help, unfortunately I'm not that familiar with the s...

Its really great to hear that these tongs are in fact genuine. It makes them a fascinating piece of Georgian silver. Your wife is very lucky! They have obviously generated a lot of interest. Regarding their use. Are they of a suitable size for picking food items off of a serving pate & placing i...

Hi, These are a fascinating pair of tongs. The previous replies are quite correct regarding the maker & the hallmark, but I too am a little suspicious of them. It is quite correct that you should expect to see the soldered joins where they are. Its also good to see the Lion Passant struck over t...

Thats really helpful - Thanks very much. Its great to see John Faux's mark on tongs on his own, its much more common to see his mark with George Love.
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Can anyone help me identify this makers mark. I think the tongs are dated c1780. They are marked in the bowls with the Lion Passant in one bowl and makers mark in the other. I'm not sure about the Lion - whether it is London, Exeter or Newcastle. I can't identify the mark IF. http://www.silversugart...

Hi, John R McGrew has published an excellent book called "Manufacturers' Marks on American Coin Silver". He refers to this mark in his book as a manufacturers mark with the following comment: "Attributed to the Cunningham or Cooper periods of this sequence of manufacturers. Gilbrt-Cun...

Hi,

any chance of a picture of the tongs & the maker's mark?

Hi, Given that the hallmark is Birmingham 1901 - a vague possibility is "Smith & Bartlam" of Limewood Road, Birmingham. They registered marks as S&BM, in two diamonds. This is not your mark, but they could well have registered another mark that is not in the book I'm looking at. Re...

Hi,

There was a James Walker working out of Aberdeen 1838-1850. He marked his work either "Walker" or "WA" - could be him
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Hi Mike,

Thanks very much for the reply. I did look at Adam Graham, but the mark in Jackson's doesn't show the star & the tree doesn't look like the usual Glasgow Fish, Tree & Bell, hence my confusion. Have you seen his mark with the star on other items?

Regards
Graham
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Are you able to help with identifying these tongs. I'm fairly confident that the duty mark is Georgian British, but cannot identify the other mark - is it a town mark? Neither can I identify the maker. Anyone have any ideas? http://www.silversugartongs.com/AG.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);ret...

I think they may be silver-plated. Can anyone tell me any more?

http://www.silversugartongs.com/tongs.JPG
http://www.silversugartongs.com/hallmarks.JPG

Thanks very much

Hi Miriam,

I would defer to your other information. They are more likely to be right than me!

Regards
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Hi,

There was a JE in an oval punch - William Hilton Benson, John Benson, George Walter Benson - trading as "J Eastham" of Liverpool as watchcase makers, dated 1877 to 1915. Might be wrong though as the mark is unclear.

Regards
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This mark is definitely Samuel Godbehere, Edward Wigan & James Bult. The date is between 1st September 1815 and 28th May 1816. This can be determined because the duty mark has a flat bottom.

SG EW IB were working together between 15th March 1800 & 15th September 1818.

Regards
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