www.925-1000.com

And now for someyhing completely different..more figures and faces than I want to count. Marks on handle base at back: "78 STERLING" (spoon) and "25 STERLING" (fork). On front of fork...Lion rampant guarantee but unreadable numeral (left) and letter code (right) resembling downward-hooked capital "T" (1954?), but cannot dismiss similar small "r" marks. Don't see other marks in detail except a pentagram-like repetition in the backwall details, which I expect is just design element. Any clue as to what we are looking at?

A bit of suspicion..cleaning the nieolo only from the marks makes me think these are re-castings made from impressions of older objects. Could this be something done outside the Nederlands and thus the simple sterling stamps? Museum issues or other?

Ah, sorry! Pentagram should have been pentagonal-like...big difference.

Hi, could be Dutch silver (hall)marks, standard mark, lion passant above 2 (833) or ll (835) with export key ( below the sterling standard 925). Check for more marks; office mark Minerva head and maker's mark.
For Dutch (hall) marks see:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=32028
Please clean and show all marks of fork and spoon(enhanced clear images). Top left of the lion passant could be a maker's mark.


Peter

Group 2 of 4: Reverse side construction..note little tarnish, none of the niello, plain with shell at handle base, Sterling stamp on handles.

Group 3 of 4: Another view of reverse showing handle end points, shot of lion passant after (niello) blackening agent has been partially cleared.

Group 4 of 4: Detail of fork showing object on back wall of garden scene (obviously not a maker mark), garden scene in base, and figurals/faces on handle. [No authentic other markings can be found hidden in detail or obscurred by antiquing agent.]

Hi, nothing more I can say or add. You are probably right re- cast, including the marks, hence the wrong shape of the standard mark.

Peter

Thank you, Peter. At least it adds to our knowledge of what's floating around out there.

I know I should make a new thread for my object, but I think I found a similar re-cast object with Austria-Hungary hallmarks....