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I want your opinion on this ladle with one single mark. For me it looks like a worn French "rooster", département mark introduced 1809, in use until 1819. See Tardy 22nd French Edition page 191.
This is the only mark on this ladel, which makes me unsure.
All your opinion and advice is welcome.
Additionally, what is the handle made of? Horn? From which animal?

Kind regards

Jörg

Hi Jörg,

The handle is likely to be made of baleen, a material that filters food and is found in the roof of the mouth in a whale.

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baleen

Trev.

Good day Jeorg and Trev,

Have been trying to look closer at image #3, below the rooster there seems to be a very worn partial mark with clips corners. Can you see what I'm looking at? Would you mind giving us a close up of that area?

Thanks
Warren

Hi Warren,
I am away for some days but will do it when I am back. I noticed the rooster mark is struck over another mark.

Trev, thank you for the material of the handle.

Jörg

Hi Warren

here a Close up of the area.
I studied the original it for a while and it is inconclusive. I start to belive there was a mark. But the whole area is mechanically reworked, filed and or sandpapered. There is a possibility a mark was removed here. But what would be the motivation to remove the maker mark and leave the purity mark?

Back to the original question, from your experience, is this the French "rooster" mark?

Eager for opinions

Jörg

Hi Jörg,

If the maker's mark was the deepest struck mark, then this would be the weakest part of the stem. Perhaps the ladle cracked sometime at this weak point and thus was repaired there. If you breathe on this part, if soldered, then the repair lines will be revealed.

Trev.