Re: Belgian 1831-1868 silversmith hallmark

[Greenwood]

Hi all,

I'm wondering which silversmith this might be. The ladle is marked with the "Janus" double head and the minerva in a circle for Belgian .800 silver of the period 1831-1868. The maker's mark is a square with L-D below what looks like a caliper.

[oel]

Hi, maker's mark LD below a calipers for the Belgian silversmith Louis François Dethier, born in the Belgian city of Mons 11-01-1775, he married Augustine Joseph Lecocq in 1803, and died Mons 16-07-1825, active in Mons 1798- ca 1825.
I believe his full name is Louis François Joseph Dethier. See
https://www.openarch.nl/abg:af030746-b0 ... 2f05a91/en



Peter.

Source: Algemeen repertorium van de edelsmeden en van de merken van edelsmeedwerk in België, page 215. Walter van Dievoet

[Greenwood]

Hi, maker's mark LD below a calipers for the Belgian silversmith Louis François Dethier, born in the Belgian city of Mons 11-01-1775, he married Augustine Joseph Lecocq in 1803, and died Mons 16-07-1825, active in Mons 1798- ca 1825.
I believe his full name is Louis François Joseph Dethier. See
https://www.openarch.nl/abg:af030746-b0 ... 2f05a91/en


Peter.

Source: Algemeen repertorium van de edelsmeden en van de merken van edelsmeedwerk in België, page 215. Walter van Dievoet

Dear oel,

Thank you for this information! That is very interesting, I definately need to get my hands on a copy of that book. What I do find confusing though, is that the Janus head mark above and the Minerva head below the makers mark, are marks only introduced in 1831. Could Dethier's workshop have passed to a successor after his death in 1825? Is there any mention of the continouance of his workshop?

[oel]

In 1827 Augustine Joseph Lecocq remarried with Jean Louis Joseph Lecomte.
https://www.openarch.nl/abg:eb4c6295-8b ... fb8d213ae2
She might have continued her first husband silver workshop after he died in 1825. Hence the hallmarks for period 1832-1869

Peter.

[Greenwood]

In 1827 Augustine Joseph Lecocq remarried with Jean Louis Joseph Lecomte.
https://www.openarch.nl/abg:eb4c6295-8b ... fb8d213ae2
She might have continued her first husband silver workshop after he died in 1825. Hence the hallmarks for period 1832-1869

Peter.

Thanks, that's plausible. Of note further is the fact that the man with whom Augustine Joseph Lecocq remarried after Dethier's death (Jean Lecomte), remarried Catherine Derneville in 1841. This leads me to believe that Dethier's widow may have continued his bussiness, but she herself likely passed somewhere before 1841. This should date the ladle to 1831-1841. Many thanks for your help in this.

[oel]

So far, there is no reason to assume that the widow continued her husband's business after his death in 1825. The widow Augustine Joseph Lecocq remarried Jean Louis Lecomte in 1827. To my knowledge her 2nd husband was not a registered silversmith, his occupation unknown.

Consulted literature'Orfèvres, joalliers et Horlogers en Hainaut au 19e siècle' by R. Stilmant, which contains the most recent bibliographical information about silversmith Louis-François Dethier. Researche does not provide any information about a possible continuation of the silver workshop by the widow. Also in other directories on Hainaut silversmithing, such as 'L'orfèvrerie en Hainaut : Mons, Ath, Tournai' by J. Dugnoille and 'Les orfèvres de Mons du XIIIe au XIXe siècle' by R. Stilmant, nothing is mentioned about this. The widow's name is also not mentioned anywhere else in the aforementioned publications.
Source; DIVA, Antwerp Home of Diamonds Giacomo Visini I Bibliotheekmedewerker


In my opinion. Perhaps it could be that the serving spoon was made shortly before Dethier's death and provided with his mark. After this the spoon has been preserved until the period 1832-1869. Somewhere during this period, the spoon was presented for assay and provided with valid legal hallmarks, in order to be able to offer it for sale at a public selling place.

Peter.