Silver Pieces - The Strange and Peculiar: 2010-07-25

The Story Behind this Blog

Being from the South, Silver is a very big part of my life. It doesn't have anything to do with wealth. Although those with more money - old money, tend to have more of it. New money tend not to spend their money on Silver. They do not have the appreciation for the warmth of the metal, the beauty of the patina, the story it tells of the generations past who have used it. A true southern girl comes of age when she chooses her silver pattern, long before she chooses her mate. If she is smart, she chooses that of her mother, grandmother, or favorite great aunt who in their benevolence will pass their silver on to her. It is the pieces in those sets, the pieces on our tables, along with the pieces we find in the corners of the displays in antique stores that prompted me to start this blog. They are beautiful, they are odd, but what are they, and what in the hell do you do with them?

Friday, July 30, 2010

Croquette Servers

This is a rare but practical piece - a Croquette Server. In the Northeastern United States, Croquettes were used as a way to serve leftover ham. But in the South, typical Croquettes were Salmon Croquettes. I could find very few examples of this utensil, and the ones I found were from extremely old patterns. These three patterns all date back to the 1800's. Later on, one would see the term "Croquette server" lumped under the description of the Tomato Server or the Asparagus Server (non-hooded). No longer was it a unique utensil. It's duty merely assigned elsewhere.

Shown in Medallion by Gorham (8 3/4 inches)

Shown in New Queens by Durgin (6 5/8 inches)

Shown in Ivy by Gorham (9 3/8 inches)

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

A Variety of Servers

Just a variety of different serving pieces that are a little different and fairly ornate. Some of these patterns, such as Scroll, New Art, Poppy, and Six Flowers are not as popular and therefore nice to see samples of their pieces.

Trout Server shown in Olympian by Tiffany (11 1/14 inches)

Waffle Server shown in Labors of Cupid by Dominick and Haff

Pie Knife shown in New Art by Durgin (10 1/2 inches)

Ice Cream Server in Chrysanthemum by Durgin (10 5/8 inches)

Click to Enlarge

Sugar Shell Spoon shown in Poppy by Paye and Baker (5 1/2 inches)

Monday, July 26, 2010

Cinderella by Gorham

This pattern was introduced by Gorham in 1925 and discontinued in 1991. The original Gorham catalog described it as "a pattern of compelling beauty". There is an acanthus leaf design on both sides and it is decorated with an oval and flowers.

Salad Fork (6 1/2 inches)

Baked Potato Fork (7 1/4 inches)

Ice Cream Fork (5 1/4 inches)

Gumbo Soup Spoon (6 7/8 inches)