posted 10-07-2003 11:33 PM            

A few weeks back there was a discussion on the General Forum about a carving set marked "6 DWT" GDWT Sterling or 6DWT Sterling - maker?. The discussion seems to have concluded that DWT stands for pennyweight and that the items in question are sterling.

I was reminded of it yesterday as I poked around a dealer's shelf of plated odds and ends hoping to discover an unrecognized treasure (very high odds against!) that I could recognize (raises the odds against to the power of n, n being large).

The first thing I idly picked up was a bunch of tea spoons of a dark grey color marked "HJC" "A1" "10 DWTS" each in its own rectangle. There were no wear spots and not a trace of plating which I assume must at one time have adhered to them. The color could be called a dark charcoal grey without the yellow tinge that, I believe, indicates NS, Alpacca, Alfenide, etc. Yes, it was very different from tarnish!

The next item was a shiny silvery little mustard or condiment spoon in 'mint' condition but the edges of the little bowl were a bit ragged, not worn just poorly finished. It was marked "HJC" "A1" "8 DWTS".

And right next to it came a couple of good size table spoons in a condition identical to that of the tea spoons. They were marked "HJC" "A1" "40 DWTS".

And last I found a bunch of soup spoons that were in the same condition as well EXCEPT that these had wear spots on the underside of the bowl; these spots though were almost black. Their marks were "HJC" "A1" "30 DWTS".

Since all this didn't meet my notion of a treasure, I let the dealer keep them. Still, I am curious about a few things:

- The colour of the spoons: I speculate that they must be made of an alloy containing no nickel. The addition of the right proportion of nickel is supposed to have been one of the key factors in producing an alloy that gave great adherence to the silverplating. So, presumably on these things all silver peeled off (except for the condiment spoon which may never have been used). But what then are the dark spots underneath the bowls of the soup spoons?

- What do the DWTS numbers refer to? i.e. the weight of silver applied to how many items? Was this marking ever a standard? If so, where and when?

- Does anyone recognize the mark "HJC" ?

posted 10-08-2003 09:20 AM            

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posted 10-08-2003 09:29 PM            

Furthermore, the amount of silver used in silverplate is per GROSS of a given item. Standard plate is 2 troy ounces of silver per 144 teaspoons. That's a lot of teaspoons to cover.

It still leaves things as a poser, though.