Picked this up on my recent trip to London at the Silver Vaults. Got home and just realised the significance of the piece after doing a little research.
It's a George III gravy boat, made in London in 1773 by John Parker and Edward Wakelin (IP & EW). This firm would later become Garrards, which was appointed to the Crown Jewellers in 1843 by Queen Victoria (they were only replaced in 2007). The hallmarks are very crisp - and pre-dating 1784, it does not bear a duty mark (the monarch's profile).
The crest though is the interesting part - I'm still trying to identify it, but I'm 90% certain that the crest EL is a Duke, as there is a ducal coronet above the initials. Haven't been able to identify the name associated with the piece yet, but it's an interesting bit of research.
Nice heavy piece, haven't weighed it (the spot value of items like this is moot), and certainly the nicest piece I've acquired to date.
[imgz=http://forums.silverstackers.com/uploads/5_gravyboat.jpg]
[/imgz] [imgz=http://forums.silverstackers.com/uploads/5_hallmarks.jpg]
[/imgz] [imgz=http://forums.silverstackers.com/uploads/5_crest.jpg]
[/imgz]
It's a George III gravy boat, made in London in 1773 by John Parker and Edward Wakelin (IP & EW). This firm would later become Garrards, which was appointed to the Crown Jewellers in 1843 by Queen Victoria (they were only replaced in 2007). The hallmarks are very crisp - and pre-dating 1784, it does not bear a duty mark (the monarch's profile).
The crest though is the interesting part - I'm still trying to identify it, but I'm 90% certain that the crest EL is a Duke, as there is a ducal coronet above the initials. Haven't been able to identify the name associated with the piece yet, but it's an interesting bit of research.
Nice heavy piece, haven't weighed it (the spot value of items like this is moot), and certainly the nicest piece I've acquired to date.
[imgz=http://forums.silverstackers.com/uploads/5_gravyboat.jpg]
