Boxed Victorian Silver King's Pattern Canteen of Cutlery, London 1855 Crested

62 Piece Silver King’s Pattern Canteen, London 1855 by George Adams

The Service

We are pleased to be offering a fabulous Victorian period silver 12 place settings canteen in Kings Pattern, all made by the best maker of the period, all crested to match and all in wonderful original condition.

This is “straight” service of spoons, forks and servers that caters for five pieces per 12 place settings (i.e. every piece is original to the set and matching). All pieces are contained within a late 19th century oak box that was retailed by Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Company Limited. We can supply King’s pattern knives to suit on request.

Every piece was hand-wrought in the traditional manner by London’s premier silver flatware maker of the 19th century, bearing hallmarks for London 1855 and the sponsor’s mark “GA” for George Adams of Chawner & Company. Each piece also bears a lovely engraved crest featuring a lion to the front terminals.

King's Pattern

King's Pattern is the most well known and popular decorative patterns. It was based on an 18th century French design and became fashionable amongst the wealthy in the early years of the 19th Century. The design encompasses a shell to both sides of the handle terminal and reverse of the bowl, scrolls down the handle shaft with a honeysuckle motif to the centre. The double-struck nature of the pattern (i.e. pattern on both sides) ensures that a good gauge of silver was used in manufacture and therefore the majority of London-made pieces in this pattern have a hefty feel in the hand.

The best quality King's Pattern was made in London, where it was hand-wrought and has a high relief to the decoration. Machine made King's Pattern from Sheffield is lower in relief and generally has a less interesting appearance and lighter weight.

The Maker

Chawner & Company was founded in 1815 by William Chawner, on the solid grounding of an apprenticeship and later partnership within the most important line of specialist spoon and forks makers dating back to the mid-18th century.

Chawner & Company became the largest and most important specialist silver flatware makers of the 19th Century. In 1840, George W Adams took over the business from his mother-in-law Mary Chawner and developed the company even further using his “GA” maker’s mark. They introduced new flatware patterns and fashioned silver for important private clients and high end retailers.

The company was prolific in their output and always produced the best quality silver flatware available. The spoons and forks were hand forged to ensure balance and durability, and were made from a good gauge of silver to give them a nice hefty weight in the hand. The reputation of Chawner & Company endures to this day and a canteen wrought by them will give maximum satisfaction.

Components

This 62-piece service consists of the following:

• 12 Table/soup Spoons      22.2cm
• 12 Table/dinner Forks      21cm
• 12 Dessert Spoons           18.2cm
• 12 Dessert Forks           17.3cm
• 12 Teaspoons                   14.65cm
• Pr Sauce Ladles                18cm

The total weight of silver is 4270 grams (137.3 troy ounces).

Condition

Excellent original condition throughout. The forks have full length tines and the spoons retain their thick bowl tips. The double struck decoration and engraving remains crisp throughout.

Presentation

This canteen is offered in a good quality oak box with individual slots. The box is mostly in good order, however a couple of spacers are missing for one of the forks - see close up in final photo. There is no key.

All of our canteens are offered with a full money-back guarantee. We are also happy to send a sample place setting for approval, on receipt of a fully refundable surety payment - just phone or email your preferences. Alternatively, in-person viewings are welcome by appointment.