www.925-1000.com

It is my understanding that some flatware made in Ireland is stamped "Sterling". How early would they have been doing this? Would it have been done in the late 1700's or earlier?

Tks

There is a thread in the Irish Section called "Identifying STERLING marks" and it is the best reference guide on this subject.

Silver was stamped STERLING (with some variants of this) in Cork, Limerick and Kinsale from circa 1710 and common from 1715, along with the maker's mark, although you can find silver with just STERLING and no maker's mark or vice versa. Ireland however was not the only country to stamp STERLING so other factors need to be examined too. If the stamp is in script letters rather than block, it's likely American.

It's impossible to say any more without photos of the spoon. Refer to: http://www.925-1000.com/images.html