Russian Coffee Spoons - Faberge? - With Images!

[ninothedog]

Hello - I recently bought these coffee spoons, which were said to be Faberge. I thought they were probably fake, but bought them anyway because I was intrigued by the design and they were not expensive. After having them for a while, I am even more intrigued and would appreciate an expert opinion. I think they are exceptionally well made, definitely hand-made (as opposed to stamped Scandinavian spoons,) have beautiful 2 color blue enamel over guilloche and other fine detail. The hallmarks are tiny and difficult to read, even with a loop, and if I'm reading them correctly, say St. Petersburg, after 1908, 88/96 silver, Karl Faberge. I wonder what you might think.
The hallmarks are from each of the 6 spoons. Some are better than others.







Thanks for any thoughts you might have.
John

[AG2012]

Hi,
Sorry, spoons are worthless fake of extremely poor quality and faked marks, not even a dangerous fake.

Regards

[AG2012]

You mentioned Scandinavian silversmiths. They are probably the best enamellers in the world.
I suppose you have Scandinavian spoons to compare with this enamel (no need to elaborate poor quality).

[Qrt.S]

I was writing while AG2012 already answered you. I share his opinion. Unfortunately they are quite poor fakes. Sorry, but the workmanship is everything else than "well made" i.e. poor quality. The enameling is "plain", not guilloche technique (look it up).

Moreover, to find genuine Fabergé objects on internet is a close to impossible mission. I would say that >90% of objects for sale there are fakes. Be aware of that fact and especially with enameled objects. Please also note that the equation: "cheap" = Fabergé is impossible. But on the contrary the equation "cheap"=Fauxberge is valid indeed.

In addition, like I already wrote in the other thread, please always clean the object and especially the marks before showing it here.
Thank you in advance.

[Qrt.S]

For better understanding, compare the two pictures and try to figure out which one is a fake.

[ninothedog]

Hi AG2012 and Qrt.S,

Thank you for your comments. I am not surprised or disappointed. It's what I expected. I do have a couple comments and questions though, if you have another moment.

Regarding the kokoshnik mark, yes, I can see many differences; shape of cartouche, font for 88, relative size of alpha mark, and different profile - mine even appears to have a beard :). Thank you for posting these side-by-side.

Regarding 'guilloche.' Yes, I know what guilloche is and used the word in this case (apparently wrongly) to refer to linework in the silver under the clear enamel: parallel lines under the enamel on the stem and a series of linked squares under the enamel of the bowl. I meant to differentiate it from the cloisonne more typical of Russian-style spoons. Is there a term for this? Just "enamel on silver"?

Neither of you mentioned the style, which seems unique to me. I don't know of other spoons with a similar type of design, and although the marks are fake, I don't think the spoons were originally made to be fake Faberge, but rather had original marks removed and the fakes added. There is a mark in the bowl of one of the spoons that looks as though it might have been a hallmark rubbed off. It is not clear enough for a picture though. I don't know of anything like them, design-wise, and if you do, I'd appreciate any insight you might have.

My comparison to Scandinavian work was to what I think of as "cookie cutter" spoons, that are beautiful on the front, smooth and unadorned on the back and all in a set exactly the same size and shape reflecting careful machining. I was comparing that exactitude to the slight differences in each of these spoons, which show they were hand made. It wasn't meant to be a put down of Scandinavian enamel, of which I have many examples.

Qrt.S - I don't know what other thread you refer to. I did wash the spoons with soap and water and gave them a light rubbing with a silver cloth. I haven't polished them yet. They were filthy though, and the design is deep, so they might suffer more cleaning.

Thanks again,
John

[Qrt.S]

No problem, you are welcome.
Enamel on a plain surface is just "plain" I told you that in an earlier input. The first to do before buying anything is to learn how the (hall-)marks look like and what they mean, is it silver or something else etc.. Secondly look at the quality. Use your own knowledge and eyes and don't let the seller distract you with his often "fairy tales". About the style. It seems to be a little of this and that. If I had to say something, it would be eclectic. The tread I referred to is this: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=57581 What can you see from the picture, not much.

About cleaning silver. Washing is not always enough. Please find a lot of good cleaning advises here:
viewforum.php?f=34

Have a nice day

Qrt.S

PS. Take my advice and get rid of the spoons asap.

[ninothedog]

Thanks for the additional info, Qrt.S. It's appreciated. -- I don't think I could ethically put forgeries back on the market and will keep the spoons as an object lesson. I do think they're beautiful anyway. The next generation can figure out what to do with them. -- Regards, John