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Hello! Can anyone help me to identify the age of this sterling silver magnifying glass? I purchased it on eBay. The seller claimed that it was made in Sheffield in 1909. I did some research online on hallmarks and can't understand why there are only 2 marks on this - one of the lion passant and the other looks like an "i" (sort of looks like an arrow). I gather that the lion mark only indicates that it is sterling silver. Why no town mark? And the date stamp for 1909 Sheffield is apparently an "r". Any insight into this would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.

Jillian

Jillian
My first thought is that this is a knife handle stuck on a magnifying glass, the metal around the glass, is that hallmarked ? the handle looks to elaborate in my mind for it, but lets await other comments
Nigel

Wow, I wonder if you're right. The metal around the glass is not sterling silver so...you could be right. Geez. Thanks for the reply.

Hello Jillian,

The handle of your magnifying glass is in the King’s pattern and was made by a haft maker who would usually supply them to cutlers to insert knife blades. However it is not unusual to find them being used for other article, as in the case of your magnifying glass. They were stamped out of a die in two halves, then soldered together, filled with a saurising cement and then the tang of the piece is then inserted into the handle. The cement sets and it holds the head in place.

The hafts, being made in two separate pieces are hallmarked separately. There should be a full hallmark on one side and a supplementary, partial mark on the other side, as in your photograph. Is there another hallmark on the other side of your piece?

As there is no visible damage to the silver part of your glass, there is no reason to suspect that this is anything other than an original marriage. However, these pieces are still being produced today and it could be quite a recent construction. The metal surrounding the glass would be an important clue.

Hope this helps,

Paul.

Thanks for your comment. The markings are identical on both sides of the handle (2 on each side).