Crumb Knife

Not just for the efficient waiter in the fancy restaurant, these are available in your pattern for use at your dining room table. The Crumb Knife (or Crumber) is designed to remove crumbs from your table. My assumption is that this was not meant for the lady of the house but more likely for her house servants.

This can be a very expensive piece in some of the older patterns.

(Unknown pattern by Duhme)

Oyster Servers

Yes, there are two - the Oyster Server and the Fried Oyster Server, as well as an Oyster Fork, which is used in addition to a five piece place setting. The server is used to serve oysters both in and out of the shell, while the fried server, just like its name, is used to serve fried oysters. (And, to think all these years I have been using a standard serving spoon - how embarrassing.)

The Oyster Server shown Lancaster by Gorham

Oyster Fork shown in Olympian by Tiffany

Petite Four Server

If you didn't know before, you need the Petite Four Server to properly to serve your petite fours. You can find this piece in most patterns.


(Shown Love Disarmed by Reed and Barton)

Jelly/Cake Server

Once again, not to be confused with your every day cake server, the Jelly/Cake Server looks like a cake server or pie server and can be used to lift and serve pie or cake, however this piece can also properly serve solid jellies. It would have taken a while for someone just to have learned which of these pieces were used for which occasion. God forbid one use a regular cake server when the occasion called for a Jelly/Cake Server.

(Shown in Stratford by International)

Cracker Spoon

The every day Cracker Spoon, used to scoop and serve crackers. I think most likely oyster and soup crackers (I don't think saltines would fit well in the scoop.) There is a pierced and solid. Here are examples of both.

Old English by Towle (7 1/2 inches)

Ice Cream Slicer

Don't confuse this with an ice cream knife, the Ice Cream Slicer is different. There was a time when ice cream was made like large blocks of ice and very hard. This utensil was used to slice the ice cream from these blocks into pieces that would fit nicely into serving dishes and on plates.

(Shown in Old Master by Towle)

Cake Saw

Now not to be confused with the cake knife or the wedding cake knife, the Cake Saw has a serrated side with long teeth. I never could find a reason one would need "long teeth" to cut a cake unless it was Aunt Maude's ungodly fruit cake that was more like a brick and everyone avoided it on the family buffet.(10 1/2 inches)


Lily of the Valley by Whiting (10 inches)

Sardine Fork

Given that I have never served my guests sardines, I'm not sure I would have a use for a Sardine Fork, although I must admit it is an attractive piece. After some diligent searching I found a description of the need and use of this rather odd piece, and I quote, "The distribution of canned food forever changed cuisine in the U.S. The Midwest, for example, never received seafood until it got a shelf-life. Canned sardines were a huge hit in non-coastal areas and their novelty warranted a new utensil. Seven short tines were just right for stabbing the length of this long but little fish out of its oil." Further research shows perhaps they are more practical and for things other than sardines. They can be used for serving pickled vegetables, anchovies, and petits fours - now there's a variety for you.

Unlike most pieces that are simliar across sterling companies and patterns, this particular piece was all over the map. I found one by International with 6 tines, another with only 5 tines. Old master by Towle had a Sardine Server that was flat with no tines as did Grande Baroque- Continental by Wallace.

(Shown in Orange Blossom by Old Alvin 5 3/8 inches)

Corn Butterer

Oddly enough, I could not find a description of a sterling Corn Butterer and never having had one at my plate when served corn, I had no personal experience. However after looking at it, I assume that one would put butter in it and then use it to rub on an ear of corn. Actually, it could come in as a handy piece, expensive, but handy.

(Shown here in Francis I by Reed and  Barton)

Bonbon Spoon

Now the Bonbon Spoon may be a more familiar piece to some of us. However, were you aware that there are three types? - a Bonbon Scoop, a Bonbon Pierced Spoon, & the more popularBonbon Solid Spoon. The difference between the "scoop" and the "spoon" is that the "scoop" has a shell bowl, while the "spoon" has a rounded one. To complicate life, you can also have a Bonbon Nut Server and Bonbon Tongs. I think they carry this to the extreme but then the Victorian era did love their candies. And, for those curious sorts, Bonbons are candies rolled into balls usually made of chocolate. These silver pieces were designed to keep the chocolates from melting in their hands since they had no air conditioning (and M and Ms had yet to be invented)

(The pierced spoon shown is Buttercup by Gorham 4 5/8 inches)

(The Solid Spoon shown in Repousse by Kirk  5 1/8 inches)

(The Scoop shown in Landers No.2 by Baker Manchester 5 3/8 inches)