Essex Jewelry and Antiques

Fab Set 6 1873 Dutch 934 Silver Continental Full Dinner Size Forks w Neat Crest

$1,109.00

Presented is an exceptional quality set of 6 Dutch first standard silver dinner forks. These forks date to 1873/1874 and were made by Kempen & Zoon, a renowned Dutch maker that is still active today. The forks are a full continental dinner size, which is hard to find today. The pattern is a classic Fiddle Thread design, with a gentle upturn to the ends of the handles. On the reverse, in the European style, is a crest. The crest is separately cast and applied rather than simply engraved, a sure sign of quality and superb craftsmanship. Good resources on Dutch heraldry are hard to come by, but the presence of a fairly ornate coronet and the care in rendering the tinctures of the coat of arms (blue, gold, and red in this case) combined with the use of first standard silver suggests nobility of some sort.

Each fork is stamped with Dutch hallmarks: the lion rampant for first standard silver, 934 purity; the Minerva head duty stamp; a date letter of either O for 1873 or P for 1874; and a maker's mark for Fa. J.M. van Kempen & Zoon. Three forks have the O date and three have the P date. It's worth noting that 934 is a higher purity silver than sterling, which is 925. This set is in excellent overall condition. Some of the tines of the forks have a little bit of rounding to the tips, and occasional knife marks, commensurate with age and light use. There are no splits, no dents, no breaks, no monogram removals, and no repairs.

Each fork measures about 8 1/4 inches long.

The total weight for the set is 478 grams or 16.9 regular ounces. -jm