Silver plate? Biscuit barrel? Tea caddy?

[davcom1]

Hi all,

I'm being a little cheeky here by asking for help straight from the off but having just inherited this item, I'd love to know a little more about it...

I had a look myself and thought the "S" in the hallmark might mean 1907 but am unsure whether it is a biscuit barrel or something else?

Also, I would guess it is silver plate as the inside is almost like aluminium.

UK based btw.

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

[dognose]

Hi Davcom1,

Welcome to the Forum.

Yes, it's silver plated, as confirmed by the 'EP' (Electro Plate) mark. The 'S' is very unlikely to be a date mark, but likely a reference to the town of manufacture, in this case, Sheffield. However, I'm struggling to read the first mark, I presume '?' & S. How do you read it?

Trev.

[davcom1]

Thanks Trev... To be honest, the "EP" looks more like RP or PP as the top part of the first letter seems too curved to be an "E" but its difficult to distinguish.

The first part is virtually unreadable unfortunately but does end with "S" I believe. I even wondered if the middle was an ampersand &.

David

[silvermakersmarks]

silvercollection.it has an illustration of a mark which appears to be very similar - see the (B&S) (S) (EP) mark here. It is listed in the Unidentified section.

[davcom1]

That's a good likeness, thanks.

So can anyone confirm what it was for? Biscuits? Tea? Or just a general ornate lidded container?

Also is the "S" centre mark denoting Sheffield rather than 1907?

Thanks again,

David

[silvermakersmarks]

It obviously had some specific purpose originally, but it eludes me I'm afraid. The "S" certainly does not stand for 1907. This mark is not a hallmark so hallmarking date rules do not apply. In any case none of the assay offices used "S" in 1907 anyway. Based on observation we find that an individual letter in electroplate marks, like this S, normally stands for the town or city of manufacture, which is why Trev suggested Sheffield.

Phil

[davcom1]

Thank you guys for the information and clarification - I appreciate you both taking the time to help.

David