18 place setting Queen's Pattern Service 1897

The Service

This late Victorian period silver 18 place settings canteen is in the highly sought after Queen’s Pattern. The service provides for nine pieces per 18 place settings and bears a fine engraved crest throughout.  The service can be augmented to 36 place settings with the optional extra pieces that are available.

With an average of less than £75 per piece we are pleased to offer this extensive service at an extremely competitive price. To buy new, the majority of these pieces would cost more than £250 each, plus a chest would need to be made bespoke.

This is a straight canteen within its original iron bound wooden chest. All the spoons, forks and servers* are hallmarked for London 1897 and all the knives and carvers for Sheffield 1896 by Mappin & Webb.

The flatware was made by Holland, Aldwinckle & Slater. They were the best specialist flatware makers at this period and were responsible for much of the spoons and forks produced at this period. Much of their work bears the makers (sponsors) mark of retailers. In this case, the retailers would have been Mappin & Webb who sourced the knives from specialist cutlers in Sheffield (and marked with their own mark), whilst the flatware bears the mark of the outworker makers.

*One teaspoon, the sugar tongs and one carving knife have non-matching hallmarks and lack the crest – in all other ways they are an exact match.

 All the spoons and forks were hand-wrought in the traditional London manner and the silver handled knives are fitted with best quality stainless steel blades.

There is a good range of servers available including a very hefty soup ladle and a finely pierced pair of fish servers. The carving set has steel blades and the forks have sprung guards to the reverse side.

Queen's Pattern

Queen’s Pattern was first in fashion in the 1820’s and was named in honour of Queen Caroline of Brunswick (King George IV’s wife). The highly ornate decoration found on Queen’s Pattern demands that each piece is made with a thick gauge of silver and thus makes it one of the most prestigious flatware patterns. 

There are several variants of the pattern; this canteen being "anthemion heel" which is the most popular. This term relates to the motif on the reverse side of the bowl and tines.

Components

This 189-piece service consists of the following:

 Total weight of weighable silver 10,455 grams (336.2 troy ounces).  Additional to this weight are the 18 table knives, 18 dessert knives & 6 carvers.

Optional Extras

This large chest of silver came with a second much smaller box that contains extra dining items that have matching hallmarks and crest. The extra pieces are:-

18 Table Forks

18 Dessert Forks

18 Table Spoons

2 Dessert Spoons (not boxed)

These extra pieces would take the service up to 36 place settings. We could help augment the knives and any other dining requirements if a full 36 place setting were required.

Condition

Excellent polished condition throughout. It is a huge bonus for this service to be in such pristine condition. The high relief decoration is crisp throughout, the spoons have original thick bowl tips and the forks are full and equal length. The chest has seen some wear but is basically sound and done a fine job in preserving its contents.

Presentation

This canteen is supplied in its original iron bound chest with blue baize interior. The chest is made of oak and is strengthened around the edges and corners with black painted iron strips and has two matching carrying handles. There is central brass plate which is not engraved. The original locking key is still present.

Provenance

This canteen bears the crest of the Usher family of Scotland.

As with all the canteens available from our web-site, we are happy to send a sample place setting for approval, on receipt of a fully refundable surety payment, prior to purchasing this canteen.