www.925-1000.com

I'm hoping that members can confirm (or otherwise!) that these marks belong to a Hanau silversmith.

I have found three examples of the same mark, all applied to heavily repoussé'd examples of a sugar sifter, and also to a pair of decorative salts with glass liners.







These are examples of the two pieces ...



The quality and style of the work would appear to be appropriate for Hanau, but I'd like to identify the maker, if possible. Any advice welcome.

Hi, welcome to the forum. These marks reminds me of silverplater's marks. Is it solid silver?

Peter.

Thanks for the welcome Peter.

Yes, as far as I know all these examples are confirmed as silver, not plate. If the attribution to Hanau is correct, c1880-1900, then they are likely to be 800 grade, not Sterling. I appreciate that some Hanau pieces do carry an "800" grade mark, but it seems to have depended largely upon which country's mark the silversmith was trying to emulate, and this has the superficial appearance of a French (or perhaps even a British) hallmark.

One of the examples here was originally listed online as "French", even though it's evidently not ... which suggests the original silversmith achieved his aims.

I think there were around 100 Hanau silversmiths involved in pseudo hallmarking between 1875 and around 1920, but records seem to be fairly incomplete. I'm not sure I can justify investing (yet) in a dedicated book on the subject!