Silver tea pot

[jml1891]

I would appreciate some assistance with the hallmarks on this silver teapot. I suspect it was made in Sheffield in 1876 based on the J, but the crown for Sheffield looks somewhat different that others I have seen when searching online. The lion also looks different than many others for sterling items. Also stumped as to the other two symbols. One is a clover and the other looks like a harp or lyre. There is also an engraving on the side of the teapot shown in the third image. Any ideas as to what it represents? Thanks for your help!

[AG2012]

Hi,
Welcome to the forum.
Cannot recognize the marks but they are not British (Sheffield) marks.
Very interesting, though. Possibly colonial.Let`s wait for more opinions.
regards

[jml1891]

Thanks. The teapot was bought in Great Britain if that is any help.

[AG2012]

There is another possibility - silver plated.
Sorry, cannot recognize the marks.

[dognose]

Hi,

Welcome to the Forum.

The style of these marks are typical of British plater's marks, they are in a majority of cases, meaningless, and are just meant to imitate official British hallmarks.

However, in this case, there may be some clues to the maker. A shamrock and a harp contained in the marks likely suggests Irish origin. This coupled with the J·S initials points towards the possibility that these may be the marks of John Smyth of Dublin, a leading member of the trade in Ireland in the second half of the 19th century.

At this point, I'm only offering the name as a possibility and a route for further research.

The engraving on the side would be the family crest of a former owner of the teapot.

See: viewtopic.php?f=38&t=18350&p=41436&hilit=smyth#p41436

Trev.

[jml1891]

Thanks for the info!