Silverware sold by weight
Posted: Wed Aug 25, 2010 5:02 pm
by silverly
A footline in Waite's 1888 Newburgh City Directory:
I thought it was interesting the way silverware was being sold then.
Re: Silverware sold by weight
Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2010 5:49 am
by dognose
Hi Pat,
It would appear that the practise of selling by weight alone continued until at least the end of the century.
Tiffany & Co. - New York - 1899
Trev.
Re: Silverware sold by weight
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 9:11 am
by buckler
The selling of silver by weight in Auction Houses continued into the post WWII period. The writer can just (only just ! ) remember the practise at Christies. All lots had a weight given, and you bid at so much an ounce. So a bid of £2.00 on a 42 ounce coffee pot was actually for £84. Also the serious bidding was in guineas (£1.05) until decimalisation I think.
Makes trying to remember you are going to have a premium, plus VAT on the premium a simple matter !
Even now some of the older dealers still estimate value by weight X condition X rarity X beauty.