Born with a Silver Spoon....!

An important and exciting collection of early West Country silver spoons with some dating back to the reign of Elizabeth I is to be sold by Chilcotts Auctioneers on December 4.

‘The Charles C Brian Collection’ was amassed over many years by Mr Brian, combining his love of Plymouth and Devon with his interest in early silver.

Chilcotts’ Silver Specialist, Jennifer Bell said: “Spoons of this period were personal possessions, carried with you and used at mealtimes wherever you were. Cutlery sets and laying the table didn’t begin until well into the 18th century.

“These spoons were given as gifts, usually when a child was born or at marriages. Silver was only affordable to the wealthiest families; to own a silver spoon was a sign of high status and the origin of the popular phrase ‘born with a silver spoon in their mouth’. Many of the spoons in the collection bear the initials and dates of their recipients.”

For collectors of early spoons, West Country examples are particularly interesting and mostly rare. Those with the town mark for Plymouth are of particular note as the demand for silver grew in the city in line with its growing prosperity through the development of the port during the Tudor and Stuart periods.

Once the regional Assay (hallmarking) Office opened in Exeter in 1701, most Plymouth silversmiths, along with makers from other West Country centres such as Barnstaple and Taunton registered their marks at Exeter. The regional town marks then all became standardised and replaced with the Exeter hallmarks. Silver items with local town marks such as Plymouth are therefore early, rare and very desirable to collectors.

Other notable examples are a James I Lion Sejant (the finial or top of the spoon cast in the form of a seated lion), made circa 1610 by William Bartlett of Exeter, which has engraved betrothal initials ‘EB and SW’ and dated 1639. This spoon has a pre-sale estimate of £1500 - 2000. There is a distinctive and rare ‘Puritan’ spoon dating from the Civil War period with an estimate of £800 - 1200 which is also marked as once being a part of the ‘Breadalbane Collection’ of Gavin Campbell, 1st Marquess of Breadalbane, who was an important Victorian collector of silver.

The collection moves through the Queen Anne and William and Mary reigns into the start of the Georgian period in the eighteenth century with Trefid, Dognose and early Hanoverian pattern examples. Estimate for these range from £50 - £500.

“This is a fine collection of spoons with a good provenance. Mr Brian was careful to collect examples with good clear marks. It is not uncommon to see a few good early examples in a sale but to have the opportunity to sell such an unusually large collection is a real privilege.  

“It’s been fascinating to catalogue them and to see up close how spoons changed over the centuries, often being influenced by the wider social and political situation of the time. For example, during the Civil War period, the characteristic crowned ‘X’ of the Exeter town mark was often shown lacking the crown- clearly showing the maker to be on the side of Parliament.”

The collection comprises around 40 lots and is expected to sell for a total value of between £20,000 and £30,000.

The auction takes place on Saturday December 4 at the Dolphin Sale Rooms in Honiton High Street. Viewing is available by appointment in the two weeks prior to the sale.

To find out more visit Chilcotts website.