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tline3open  Meriden Britannia USN teapot spout basket

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Author Topic:   Meriden Britannia USN teapot spout basket
silverSMITH

Posts: 23
Registered: Aug 2018

iconnumber posted 08-26-2018 12:56 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for silverSMITH     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Permission to come aboard, Sir!

While I have to readily admit, I am a snob when it comes to hard cover verses soft in books, and sterling verses plate in tableware, as the proud daughter of a USN sailor (submarine service, 20 years) I just had to “surface, surface, surface” when I saw this little gem through the periscope in a silver shop in Fairhope, AL.

This silver plate basket is designed for the prongs to slip down the spout of a teapot, so that the basket dangles from the spout to catch loose tea leaves from entering into the tea cup.

I believe the mark is Meriden Britannia Co. After that I am at a loss for the meaning of the additional markings on plate.

Having been aboard many WWII ships & subs, I found it incredible that such an accoutrement found its way aboard ship, until I read that in the days before common air travel, diplomats & envoys were dispatched on USN vessels to far-away destinations for talks & treaty signings. Many of these ceremonies took place aboard ship, so the government charged the USN to be equipped & ready to host kings, queens, presidents, & emperors.

This piece probably would have been found in the captain’s quarters or mess, & was labeled “mid-century” (1950s), but 1930-40s would seem more like the time period I would have expected a spout basket to have still been in favor.

Can anyone help drop anchor on this?

Reverse side. Note arrows & olive branch, symbols of strength both in war & peace.

[

[This message has been edited by silverSMITH (edited 08-26-2018).]

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dragonflywink

Posts: 993
Registered: Dec 2002

iconnumber posted 08-26-2018 03:34 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for dragonflywink     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
International Silver (Meriden Britannia, in this case) used date codes on their hotelware starting, if I recall correctly, in 1914 - the '41' in the square indicates manufacture in 1941, the other mark is factory production code.

~Cheryl

1913 ad for Meriden Britannia hotelware:

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ahwt

Posts: 2334
Registered: Mar 2003

iconnumber posted 08-26-2018 09:57 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for ahwt     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Great find. With a 1941 manufacture date your tea basket may well have served in WW II.

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Kimo

Posts: 1627
Registered: Mar 2003

iconnumber posted 08-26-2018 08:07 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Kimo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Most officers' mess's, both on board ships and in land bases, had nice settings of silver and china. They typically had either generic USN markings such as yours or with ship specific markings, especially on the larger ships. I have seen them both in silver plate such as yours and in sterling. While things have changed somewhat in the past few decades, remember that during WW 2 and before the ship's officers were not only "gentlemen" who were commissioned by acts of Congress, but they were mostly drawn from wealthier families with college degrees that were not as common as they are today. While there are still formal Navy guidelines for "Mess Night" and officers' mess, they were even more formal and rigid going back in history from WW 2. And it was not just for formal entertaining of outside dignitaries and VIPs, it was also for officers from other ships and even just for the officers of the ship itself. After all one would not expect the gejntlemen to drink a toast to the ship out of a dented tin cup or have their coffee poured out of an aluminum pot or eat their dinner with stamped steel tableware, etc.

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