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argent_pur
Penny Sorter Member
78 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 19:36:06
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Hey guys, I have a question for you--I bought some scrap sterling flatware on ebay a few days ago and I noticed one of the forks has a small chip in the topside of the handle, revealing a black(ish) material underneath. The maker is Gorham and all the appropriate marks are there (lion, anchor, etc..) plus "STERLING" though it's very worn. I checked the marks against the product line (King George c. 1894) and it all checks out fine. My question is--could this material be a filler? I've never heard of forks having fillers, only knives, candlesticks, etc...
Any help would be appreciated, thanks
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wayne1956
Penny Pincher Member
177 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 20:16:03
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Are you sure is just not the silver tarnishing? |
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argent_pur
Penny Sorter Member
78 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 20:55:01
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It's not a surface tarnish, it's a chip for sure... |
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harper
Penny Sorter Member
USA
25 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 21:53:13
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I think wayne meant "is the black substance inside the chip tarnished silver?"
the "worn" sterling stamp would make me a little suspicious, but I doubt it would be worth the effort to forge such a thing. |
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wayne1956
Penny Pincher Member
177 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 22:01:16
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quote: Originally posted by harper
I think wayne meant "is the black substance inside the chip tarnished silver?"
Bingo, that is what I meant. |
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argent_pur
Penny Sorter Member
78 Posts |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 23:22:23
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Ah, well that could be...I used some Conisseurs (sp?) sterling cleaner and it didn't take it off, but it seemed to lighten it a wee bit, so yeah it could just be tarnish. Good call, wayne
I wasn't really worried about a forgery, I agree with you harper, I don't think it would be worth copying unless it was a rare piece. This is just scrap and was described as such. |
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cpthnsolo
Penny Sorter Member
50 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2010 : 16:16:45
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I only have a half dozen or so pieces of sterling but it seems strange to me that the piece has the Lion stamp and says sterling. Is that common on English sterling?
You must be logged in to see this link. |
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harper
Penny Sorter Member
USA
25 Posts |
Posted - 09/04/2010 : 03:43:16
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the lion referes to the maker? I didn't look at the site, but I bet it explains it there
quote: Originally posted by cpthnsolo
I only have a half dozen or so pieces of sterling but it seems strange to me that the piece has the Lion stamp and says sterling. Is that common on English sterling?
You must be logged in to see this link.
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argent_pur
Penny Sorter Member
78 Posts |
Posted - 09/04/2010 : 11:00:32
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Yes, the lion and anchor (as well as a third mark that I'm forgetting at the moment) are all Gorham Marks. The black stuff was tarnish, BTW, so good call Wayne |
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Flbandit
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
851 Posts |
Posted - 09/04/2010 : 13:14:22
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That is a cool site, I've surfed it a few times. Lot's and lot's of info. |
Are you throwing that out? |
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