posted 07-26-2005 06:28 PM            

This is a continuation of an earlier thread started by Scott Martin in which he illustrated a mark that he attributes to John Wolfe Forbes based on Belden (I’m not eligible for that forum yet).

• John Wolfe Forbes
  
• Anchor Star Head

For comparison, I’m illustrating Forbes’s mark on a tablespoon I just acquired. Perhaps this mark is the one that Belden illustrates—unfortunately I don’t have access to that book at the moment. It is different than other Forbes marks I’ve seen thus far, and there don’t appear to be periods between initials. The dies used to strike the symbol marks on this spoon are also a little different than the ones used for the marks Scott Martin illustrated.

I was wondering how common engraved heraldic or pseudo-heraldic devices like this one are in 19th-century American silver? I have certainly seen them on Canadian pieces. A couple of things about this spoon made it seem more “English” than other American tablespoons I’ve seen: the “heraldry”; its heft and weight; and the thickness and faceted shaping of the shoulders between the bowl and the handle. When I first saw this spoon—it was very, very dirty—it almost looked like some Elkington silver plate tablespoons I have that are very similar in design (engraved heraldic devices but no shells). But since I lack experience, I wonder whether I am wrong in thinking these are English characteristics. I have been told that in Canadian early 19th-century silver, Nova Scotia silver is more like English silver, and New Brunswick pieces are closer to American coin silver, due to immigration patterns, especially Loyalist immigration. I was curious if Forbes might have been trained in an English tradition or in England. In any case, I’m delighted with my new spoon!

posted 07-26-2005 07:32 PM            

Added note: Now that I've been to your site, I realize I had visited it before I came here. I misunderstood--I thought you meant you illustrated the mark on my spoon, but you meant it is just one of several known marks. I really love that site, by the way. What a lot of work you have done! It is incredibly useful, and very generous of you to share what you've done. I bookmarked it as soon as I found it.

posted 07-26-2005 07:44 PM            

You need to manually edit your images before uploading them to your server. the How to Post Photos page lists several free editing programs that will do the job handily. Here, with a few seconds fiddling is one of your images: