Postby blakstone » Sun Jun 24, 2018 8:42 pm
The crab is not an export mark, but rather the minimum silver fineness guarantee for small items made in the French provinces from 1838 (and in all of France from 1962, when it replaced the Parisian boar's head mark). Your piece looks to be earlier than 1962 though - I'd say 1920s - and therefore the first step in identifying the maker is narrowing it to which département it was assayed in. The distinguishing mark of the assay office is located in the crab mark between its lower (swimming) legs, but it can be very, very difficult to discern without a sharp, magnified image.