French Spoon Knot or Bretzel pattern

[silverfan]

Is it an egg spoon, a salt spoon, a mocha spoon or some thing else?
It is 12,1 cm long and weighs 9 grams. Within the vertical lozenge I read the letters NV or N? for the maker and two stars. Who was the maker, probably art nouveau time?
Regards silverfan

[dognose]

Hi silverfan,

Are there no other marks?

Trev.

[JayT]

Hello
The shape of the bowl, the gilding inside, and the length indicate that this is an egg spoon. The Gordian knot pattern has been popular in France since the 18th C. This particular example has additional floral engraving on what is usually a sober design.
Your spoon is earlier than you have thought. The maker, Nicolas Vautrin, specialized in small tableware, worked in Paris at 21 rue des Quatre-Fils. He first registered his mark 5 September 1844, erased 4 August 1859. His symbol was 2 stars with a crescent over the top one, and a pellet between the initials NV.

See Arminjon, v. II, no. 03355, p. 305.

Hope this helps.

Regards.

[JayT]

In looking at your spoon again, in a continuing dialog with myself, I think it was once part of an egg cruet. The pattern and design appears to be on the front of the spoon only, indicating that the spoon was displayed in the cruet facing out. See Google for pictures of egg cruets for illustrations.

[dognose]

Hi JayT,

Silverfan is having a few connection problems to the forum at the moment and has asked me to post a thank you to you:

Please send a "thank you" to JayT and tell him that I read his last post and that I think he is right in believing that the spoon of Nicolas Vautrin was part of a cruet, because the pattern is only on the front side.

Trev.

[JayT]

Thanks Trev for providing a connection so that everyone can join the party around the little egg spoon!
A “you’re welcome” goes out to Silverfan from me.
Regards.