Victorian Regimental Sterling Silver Spectacle Case, Birmingham 1849, Inscribed
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Victorian 'Regimental' sterling silver spectacle case, hallmarked Birmingham, 1849, N.M (Nathaniel mills), of oval form, decorated with central star motif, crown, belt and ribbon surrounded by floral and foliate pattern in relief, with inscription to back 'To//Sergt.Majr. R.R.H. Dunngate//11th Hussars//as a token of friendship & regard//from the office of the west Essex//Yeomanry Cavalry//June 18th 1849, total weight 111gm, 12.5 cm x 6 cm catalogue note: the 11th Hussars or Poa (Prince Albert's Own) were a cavalry regiment who escorted Prince Albert to his marriage with Queen Victoria in 1840, where they were honoured with the title of 'Prince Albert's Own' and privileged to wear the distinctive crimson trouser of the Prince's Coburg household. Provenance: collection of the late Fredric Sinfield, Sydney NSW, 1938 - 2008
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- Foliate - Decorated with leaves or leaf-like forms.
- Hallmarks - A mark stamped on articles of precious metals in Britain, since the 14th century, certifying their purity. It derives its name from the Guild Hall of the Goldsmiths' Company, who recieved its Charter in 1327 giving it the power to assay (test the purity) and mark articles of gold and silver.
The hallmark will consist of several marks, including the:
- silver standard mark, indicating the purity of the metal. Sterling silver is .925 pure silver.
- the city mark indicating the city in which it was assayed eg London, Birmingham, York etc.
- the date mark, usually a letter of the alphabet in a particular font and case,
- a duty mark, indicating whether duty had been paid to the crown, and only in use from 1784 to 1890
The piece may include an additional mark, the maker's mark, although not forming part of the hallmark, will be located in the vicinity of the hallmarks.
Sometimes silver plated items will bear faux hallmarks, often confusing those not familiar with silver markings. - Victorian Period - The Victorian period of furniture and decorative arts design covers the reign of Queen Victoria from 1837 to 1901. There was not one dominant style of furniture in the Victorian period. Designers used and modified many historical styles such as Gothic, Tudor, Elizabethan, English Rococo, Neoclassical and others, although use of some styles, such as English Rococo and Gothic tended to dominate the furniture manufacture of the period.
The Victorian period was preceded by the Regency and William IV periods, and followed by the Edwardian period, named for Edward VII (1841 ? 1910) who was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India for the brief period from 1901 until his death in 1910. - Sterling Silver - Sterling silver is a mixture of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% of another metal, usually copper. Fine silver is 99.9% pure silver, and is relatively soft and the addition of the very small amount of copper gives the metal enough strength and hardness to be worked into jewellery, decorative and household objects.