"Indian Silver" Information Please

[sbeckert]

I am new to silver marks so please go easy on me. I have 4 spoons with the marks as shown and can't find any information. I don't even know what country they are from but am assuming US >1860. Thank you for any info this group can provide.

[sbeckert]

Sorry - not sure why Photobucket is pasting it's logos over 3 of 4 pictures.

[sbeckert]

Trying to add a photo from Google Photos...

[dognose]

Hi,

Welcome to the Forum.

The below should help you:

How to Add Images

Posting Requirements

https://postimages.org (choose 'Share', then copy the 'Hotlink for forums' code) is recommended. Do not use Photobucket or Dropbox.

Ensure your images are embedded. Do not post links. Remember to use the 'Preview' button before submitting your post.

For more information see:

http://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic ... 82#p103282

Give some time to creating your posts and we'll give some time to researching and answering them.

Trev.

[sbeckert]

I think I got out. PostImage seemed to work. Thank you.

[dognose]

Hi,

Your forks were made by Daniel & Arter (Thomas Henry Daniel and Thomas Richard Arter) of the Globe Nevada Silver Works, Highgate Street, Birmingham.

They used various tradenames, including Aluminium silver, Argenline, Bengal Silver, Brazilian Silver, Burmaroid, Indian Silver, Japanese Silver, Laxey Silver and Nevada Silver. None of these, unfortunately, contain any silver at all.

Trev.

[sbeckert]

Thank you very much for the info.

[Essexboy Fisher]

Hello, below is an image of one of the D&A silver trademarks mentioned earlier in the post. That is "Laxey Silver" suggesting an association with an, at the time, well known Isle of Man mixed metals mine. It is an image missing from another forum post.



The next image is of a trademark not already mentioned. That is "Chilian Silver". The composite has 2 examples with the expected "D&A" in a shield but a 3rd with a similar shield but with "SH" or "SN". If it was "SN" it could be "NS" for nickel silver or possibly it was a retailers mark.



The last image is a D&A on spoons marked "Diamond" and lost from another post.



There are many posts on the Forum concerning "Daniel & Arter" but the posts relating to "Diamond" and "Laxey" are referenced below.

viewtopic.php?f=61&t=25355&hilit=arter+laxey

viewtopic.php?f=38&t=52971&p=186105&hil ... nd#p186105

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=47467&hilit=arter+diamond

Fishless

[Essexboy Fisher]

This is an slightly enlarged image of an advert posted elsewhere in our Forum.



viewtopic.php?f=38&t=31210&p=95952&hilit=reis#p95952

As we see referenced earlier in this post, Indian Silver is a trade name used (belonging to?) by the very large Birmingham UK electroplating and silver company of Danial and Arter. "D&A" as most silverphiles know them were in business 1860's to 1930's ( ref HawleySheffiieldknives "By the mid-1860s, Daniel & Arter was active as a spoon and fork manufacturer at Globe Electro-Plate & Spoon Works, 49 Lombard Street").
D&A is not mentioned anywhere in this Chas. L Reis & Co ad. and they makes some interesting claims about Indian Silver. Chas. L Reis & Co. suggests they are "Sole manufacturers" of Indian Silver and it is "None genuine unless stamped Indian Silver---C. L Reis & Co., Glasgow".
The advert has a suggested date of 1895 and contemporary with D&A dates. What do we think now?

Chas. L Reis & Co
Originally in Dublin, Ireland from 1870’s (68 Grafton St & 11 Lower Sackville St), at sometime in 1890, he left for Scotland. His family appears on the Census for Scotland 1891.
His Jamaica Street shop proclaiming them being a Jeweller, Goldsmith and Silversmith but at other outlets they were selling fancy goods, clocks, watches, silverplate, leather and other items for gifts. In Dublin illustrated postcards were being sold.

Here are the marks from another small spoon that could be "genuine" Indian Silver as they have the C. L Reis & Co name but retailed from the Belfast outlet.



This composite image also has another Indian Silver marked item but this time with a D & A mark on. Perhaps this is genuine, genuine Indian Silver.
The C. L Reis & Co advert may not have just been a slip of the printer as later in the 1916 there was a guilty plea and a fine for a London Chamber of Commerce prosecution for falsely labelling foreign watches as British.

Fishless