posted 07-05-2017 04:44 PM            

Wev’s post A Swell Ladle got me thinking about this spoon with a somewhat rubbed mark as this little spoon also has extra decoration around the drop as Wev’s ladle does. Joseph Carpenter may be the maker of this spoon as the mark is very similar.

The extra decoration around the drop may have been a feature of Carpenter’s silver.

It does appear to me that the engraving of the initial S is a little tentative. Maybe that is just the style of the time. It would be interesting to see other work by Mr. Carpenter to see if this style was repeated.

The picture of the mark is the same, but I altered the contrast on one to see if it was clearer. Neither one is great, however they do bear a resemblance to Carpenter’s mark.

posted 07-10-2017 05:55 PM            

Above is another spoon by Mr. Carpenter that I just found that was in the same box with the first spoon.

The drop on this spoon is not raised but it has a decoration where the raised drop would have been. I think this was much more common than the other form. I suspect that it was easier to make the spoon without the raised drop, but a decoration where it would have been carried on the look of the old one without the extra work. I will leave it to our silversmiths to see if there is any truth in this conclusion.