Origin and age of decanter

[Blacktooth]

Hello all,
Thank you for letting me join the forum.
I have a collection of wine-related "accessories" of various age and origin. One of the most intriguing is a silver & crystal decanter that I have picked up over the years. This was purchased in Melbourne in the mid-1990s, not from a specialist silversmith.
I am seeking some information on its age, origin and composition please. I have searched a number of websites and forums to no avail.
The item appears to be silver on a crystal base - it is very heavy and the silver discolours. From a winemaking perspective the silver pourer is used to reduce "rotten-egg" smells in wine.
It could be Australian as it has a WHITEHILL stamp. It also has "T" and a crown in a rectangle (it's not a Leopard's head, it looks more like the Crown Casino sign). It also has an F in a shield. My research has not turned up this combination before.
Can anyone help please? Pics in the links.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/749 ... G_3715.JPG
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/74927989/Mark.png

[Waylander]

Gday Blacktooth

There is Whitehill Silver Plate Co - an Australian company dealing in silver plate (kind of obvious I know). Good link to a previous Forum post on Whitehill - http://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic ... ll#p107890. The "F" in your picture may be a date letter of some kind - hard to know with plate. They may still be in business (Google indicates they are) - a phone call may answer the date letter conundrum.

Also, I'd suggest silver plate not sterling silver - retailers and manufacturers go to great lengths to emphasise when an item is silver (e.g. "Sterling", Lion Passant, mandated hallmarks or similar) and, in the absence of such marks, I always assume plate.

Finally, in future please display the images in the post - not everyone likes to click on links to third party websites.

Cheers

Waylander

PS Suspect an Admin will shortly move your post to the "Silver Plate" section of the Forum.

[Waylander]

Further post - some more digging has suggested there is also a Sheffield UK mob called Whitehill (or Whitehill Silver & Plate Co) currently making silver plate pieces. Not sure of any connection to the Australian company of the similar name - but if the piece is English, then it is definitively plate not silver.

Waylander

[Blacktooth]

Thank you Waylander.
Being a Noob I didn't quite understand how to get the image to upload.
Thank you for all the information you put up. I'll try and contact the mob in Australia. I did an ASIC search and it appears that it has had various incarnations since 1986. This piece was purchased in about 1988-1992.
I'll investigate further.
Regards
Blacktooth