French snuff box with Belgium import marks

[oel]

Hi,

This French snuff box with four hallmarks only and no maker’s mark has been quite a puzzle but afterwards it looks so simple.
Two hallmarks being the French Minerva head for Paris used 1838-1973 again done with Bygones/Beak-irons for 800 fineness.
The other two hallmarks are of the Kingdom of Belgium import and duty marks large & small size with the Gothic letter E= Étranger=foreign mark used 1831 and in 1869 all import and duty marks were discontinued.
My questions; can we assume the box to be made in France, why no lozenge maker’s mark and could in France an item be assayed without a responsibility mark or maker’s/importer mark? Can we assume the box to be made somewhere between 1838 and 1869?





Look forward to your comments.


Oel

[JayT]

Yes, it is possible to have a French silver object made after 1838 with a silver standard mark but without a maker’s mark. Among the reasons: the object was part of a larger set, such as a toilet set, and only some of the pieces were marked by the maker; the object was made by a wholesale manufacturer or a jobber (subcontractor) to be marked by the retailer of the item. For a good explanation of the French silver manufacturing system in the mid-nineteenth century I recommend Le Couvert et la Coutellerie de Table Française du XIXe Siècle by David Allan.

[oel]

Hi JayT,

Thanks for your explanation & recommendation.

Best,

Oel

[JayT]

My pleasure to help.