I picked this up recently at a flea market in Belgium. It’s roughly 10.5 inches (26.7 cm) tall, to the top of the finial. The seller told me it was French sterling, about 1865-1870. I’ve been doing some research lately and it appears from the first mark shown that it was made in Paris 1809-1819. This agrees with an internet search of similar pieces. Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of experience with hallmarks and I haven’t been able to identify the other marks. The maker’s mark appears to be AF with crossed anchors. There was an Armand Fresnais who worked from 1877-1927 but he used a single anchor and the mark is quite different. A relative maybe? The last mark, I can’t do anything with. Can anyone help me identify the silversmith or any other info? Thanks.
I believe I answered my own question. The “AF” mark is actually “AH”. The smith was Antoine Hience, master silversmith from 1798-1828. I have found a number of examples showing his mark. It looks like the punch used to mark my piece was pretty worn. On several earlier examples, the mark came out much more clearly, although the punch that was used appears to be damaged in the same place (lower right quadrant). So the badly struck F is an H.
Thanks for letting us know.
Phil