im a little confused about this, i have no pictures at the minute, but i have a tray, quite heavy however with no hallmarks. It has engraved decoration. The problem is, is it silver? I know a fair bit about silver as i collect it. The item had quite alot of oxidisation. I cleaned it and it came up shiny and silver like. However with no hallmarks i cant decide whether its silver.
Could it be pewter??
Hi there and thanks for joining us again. The general rule is that if its solid silver it is marked as such - silversmiths are very proud of their solid silver goods and always mark them. On the other hand, makers of silver plated goods have for years gone to lengths to pass their goods off as solid silver, skirting the edges of the laws. In most parts of the world, including the UK and the USA, it is illegal to mark goods as solid silver if they are plated.
One almost never, repeat, never, sees solid silver that is not marked, and to the contrary, much of the silver plated merchandise around is not marked at all. I’ve noticed that most silver plated goods are heavier than solid silver and the reason is obvious: silver costs more than copper or pot metal.
Much of the better pewter ware is marked as such, but that’s a subject in which I’m a novice.
Regards,
Uncle Vic
i understand uncle vic, but im 100% sure this isnt silverplate, the oxidisation was far too much to be silver plate, ive also scratched the item to see if copper or brass exists but to no avail. It was a deep scratch too. Maybe thinkin its pewter, although it does have a wierd couple etchings marked on it. Thanks for the comment. Much appreciated. Ill post a photo 2moro.