Silver Terminology/vocabulary

1

Hi.

I’ve been in antiques (almost retired at 75) both as a dealer for many years and later as auctioneer with my own auction house where catalogue descriptions were paramount for legal construct.

In recent weeks I have seen for the first time ever the term “clobbered” used a couple of times in FB silver ID groups which to me is completely alien to what I have always known as “repousse”.

Clobbered/clobbering per se has always been and to me still is by definition the surface decoration on porcelain and pottery and/or surface decoration of flatware like knife handles.

Can someone please explain where how and why this entered the silver community vocabulary by what appears to me to be a minority usage. Thanks.

2

Usually I see this term used in a derogatory way when a piece of plain Georgian silver, such as a tankard, has been later embellished in the Victorian era. This often profuse repousse decoration tends to be considered by most as ruinous to the object.

3

Thanks for the explanation.,