Presented is a superb English sterling silver double inkwell stand. This inkwell stand dates to 1892 and was made by Charles Stuart Harris. The stand itself is done in an elegant, classical style, with decorative gadrooning around the edges of the tray, the feet, and the inkwells themselves. The stand is designed with a pen tray on either side. The silver inkwell holders are held to the stand with bolts on the underside, so one could be turned around, converting the stand to a 'partners inkwell,' useable from both sides of a table or desk. The inkwell holders have removeable glass liners, made from thick, heavy, clear glass, which seats perfectly into the silver.
This piece is hallmarked on the underside with the lion passant for sterling silver, the leopard's head for the city of London, the date letter R for 1892, and the maker's mark for Charles Stuart Harris. Both oval inkwell holders are hallmarked on the side with the lion passant for sterling silver, the leopard's head for the city of London, and the maker's mark for Charles Stuart Harris. The inside of the lid of each inkwell holder is also hallmarked with the lion passant for sterling silver, the date letter R for 1892, and the maker's mark for Charles Stuart Harris. Even the bolts are hallmarked with the lion passant for sterling silver, and I can see part of the maker's mark on one of the bolts as well. Everything is 100% original.
This piece is in great overall condition. The silver has no splits, no dents, no monograms, no monogram removals, and no repairs. One of the glass liners has a minor chip to its side, and a couple of fleabites around the top rim, but this is not visible when the liner is in its silver holder.
This piece measures about 8 3/4 by 5 3/4 by 2 3/8 inches, LxWxH.
The total weight, including the glass inkwell liners, is 762 grams. The weight of just the silver is 537 grams or 18.9 regular ounces. -jm
