Is it genuine?

[amena]

I found in a closet a salver which was for a long time in this house that belonged to my father. It’s a very heavy object, cast and crudely chased.

It has a coat of arms that is very worn; on the left side there is a rampant lion with two stars above and one star below, on the right side three swords or pointed crosses.

There are only three marks that seem Irish, but in particular the mark Hibernia seems to me very suspicious.


In addition there is a written 30 = 1 drawn with a chisel.

I would be very interested in having the opinion of someone more experienced than me.
Regards
Amena

[dognose]

Hi Amena,

Just to get the ball rolling, it's a wonderful piece by John Hamilton. The lack of a date mark on such a piece is not at all abnormal at this period of time. It will date between 1710 up to 1751 when be died.

The numbers will almost certainly equate to the weight of the item, I suspect if you weigh it, it will be around 29 oz.

Hopefully others will add their thoughts.

Trev.

[silvermakersmarks]

In fact we can be a little more precise about the date. The Hibernia mark was introduced in 1730 when a six pence per troy ounce duty was imposed on Irish gold and silver. The Hibernia mark was used by the Dublin Goldsmiths Company to show that the duty had been paid. The somewhat crude nature of the mark is typical and nothing tiio be concerned about.

Phil

[scorpio]

A very nice salver. Looking at the asymmetrical decoration around the border as well as the cartouche, it looks early Rococo so probably early to mid 1740s. Douglas Bennett shows a very similar salver to this by John Hamilton in Irish Georgian Silver, although heavier at 69 oz. and with finer chasing. It's hallmarked Dublin 1746.

Although the Ashmolean Museum has another Hamilton salver, hallmarked Dublin 1734-35 and perhaps the earliest Irish Rococo silver known, yours looks more like the one Bennett shows.

Gordon

[scorpio]

My mistake, Bennett doesn't actually say who made the salver he shows on page 106 of his book.

Gordon

[amena]

Thanks to all for the valuable information, I am happy that the piece is authentic.
For Trev
Salver weighs 897 grams (with kitchen scales), that is just over 31 ounces.
I am left with the curiosity to know more about the crest.
Should I start a new topic with the same photos in "family crests"?
For scorpio
The book by Douglas Bennet is not available in any library,could you post a scan of the page 106?
Thanks again
Amena

[dognose]

Hi Amena,

The weight would be in Troy ounces.

I'll move the topic to the Family Crests section.

Trev.

[scorpio]

Here is the pic of the Dublin 1746 salver. Similar applied scroll border as yours.



Gordon

[amena]

Hi Gordon
it was very kind of you to post the pic.
Thank you very much
Amena

[nobilityhouse]

A lovely salver for the Irish peerage. The coat of arms belongs to a husband and a wife. On the viewer’s left is the husband, MALONE. The field is green with a rampaging lion between three gold stars. On the viewer’s right is the wife, GORE. The field is red with a gold band and three crosses crosslet fitchy. In 1733, The Rt. Hon. Anthony Malone married Rose, the daughter of Sir Ralph Gore, 4th Baronet. He died childless and fabulously wealthy. Everything went to his nephew Richard Malone. In 1785, Richard was created Baron Sunderlin of Lake Sunderlin. That could explain why the engraving for the coronet of a baron (four pearls) is crisp, but the coat of arms is more worn down. Kind regards.

[amena]

Many thanks Nobilityhouse, I am amazed of your knowledge.
Best
Amena

[dognose]

Hi Amena,

There is a huge amount of information regarding The Rt. Hon. Anthony Malone available on Google Books.

Trev.