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This is 18th French silver indeed - from the city of Dunkerque, which is part of the jurisdiction of the city of Lille in northern France. Your three hallmarks are as follows: Crowned F with Fleur de lys - letter date for 1738 Reconnaissance/mark for the city of Dunkerque 1730-1760 Maker's mark - cr...

if I had to venture a guess on the silversmith, I'd say it's probably Pierre-Nicolas Somme, reputed silverware maker, quite well known for his spoons. His hallmark is "PNS", with for symbol a hand holding a branch of laurels.

The same mark was discussed here a year ago. http://925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40374 Regards Thank you fore your reply and interest - in looking at the link you provided, I'm not entirely sure this is the same mark. Gerbu's post revolutionnary mark has a rosette and a papillon. The one I di...

Thank you, Peter - much appreciated!

Thanks again Peter, this additional information is quite interesting. Do you have any insight into how rare or common such sifters were in Holland during this period (end of the 18th / beginning of the 19th century)? and in comparison to those in France or England..

Best regards, fermiersgeneraux

Thank you for this information, Oel - much appreciated!

Hello All, Here's a dutch sugar sifter in solid silver from the 18th century possibly. I'm not 100% certain about the silversmith ("IT" hallmark), and I have no idea which year this item was made (letter date is crowned "I") - see photos further below. The hallmarks on the spoon ...

Hello all, I'm a bit puzzled by the following sugar sifter, as it appears to be hallmarked in the style of the sous-fermier pre-1789 (silversmith's hallmark struck three distinct times), however, the silversmith's hallmark uses the lozenge shape (post 1797?). There is also a swan (cygne) hallmark, l...

Thank you very much, JayT - your insight and information is always on point. I'm reasonably sure of the dating of the hallmarks, but of course, as it goes with these things, I could be wrong. I'm listing below additional close-ups of the other hallmarks for everyone's consideration and input. https:...

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1de166_010ae1025179432eb8e62c94180c91d1.jpg/v1/fill/w_222,h_400,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/1de166_010ae1025179432eb8e62c94180c91d1.jpg https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1de166_d606ab278ffc4b3fada8f2ec29fde302.jpg/v1/fill/w_146,h_400,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01...

Hello All, here's a pair of silverware (matching fourk and spoon) from the 18th century, in the style of filets, double seashell, and hallmarked for Paris, 1766, but I am having trouble figuring out who the silvermith might be.... Four hallmarks visible on both silverware: 1. Charge mark for Paris, ...

Thank you Zilver2 - much appreciated!

Hello all, Need help identifying the maker's mark on this champagne bucket (seau a champagne). the initials are "GM" with what looks like a propeller in between, all inside a lozenge. the other hallmark is the minerva, 1st titre (950) I believe? https://static.wixstatic.com/media/1de166_58...

year 3 would presumably refer to 1791 (calendrier republicain/revolutionary calendar)
best regards,

Jay T, you're absolutely right about the two names on this cup (Marguerite Joly and D. Monby). I had overlooked the picture and was going by John's transcription "M JOLY . D . MONBY L' AN DE LA LIBERTE". if one was able to locate these two individuals on a genealogy website like geneanet, ...

By the way, John, I forgot to mention that in the 18c, this bowl or cup was traditionally known in France as "coupe de mariage" (translates to wedding cup/bowl)..In certain regions of France, notably in the region of Bourgogne, one would offer such a silver cup/bowl to newlyweds to drink f...

Sure thing, John. If I had to make an educated guess as to why the other markings are missing, I can think of two somewhat plausible reasons: 1. Perhaps your bowl was made in the early to mid 18c (the small harpe mark was only used for "older" pieces), and was heavily used/cleaned, which c...

Hello Joho, here's some additional information about the markings on your French 18c silver buckle - four fermiers generaux hallmarks (period: Sept. 1782-Feb. 1789): Charge mark for Paris, 1782-1789, small objects (Interlaced Ls) Decharge mark for Paris, 1782-1789, small objects (peroket head) - thi...

The bowl could also have been made prior to 1780 because the small harpe discharge mark for older pieces was also in use during the 1780-1782 period (Henry Clavel I was the general farmer).

Best regards,

Hello, I believe that your bowl is of french origine. The hallmark (small harpe) may be the Paris region discharge mark (decharge - indicating that the "tax" has been paid to the ferme generale, which was a necessary indication to legally sell or possibly resell the silver bowl). This part...