Shell-front Silver Mote Spoon,1770 William Lord

This is a fabulous quality Georgian silver mote spoon with the unusual feature of a shell motif at the front of the bowl.

This spoon is superior to standard examples from the period in having a good, thick shank and long pointed, diamond-shaped terminal for unclogging the remains from teapot spouts. The shell at the front is especially unusual as these motifs are far more commonly found located to the back of the bowl. The bowl is attractively pierced for skimming dust motes from the top of tea cups.

Invariably hallmarks to mote spoons are tricky to read as the punches are often mis-struck across the narrow gauge stems and can be illegible. The thick stem of this spoon has allowed for two clear punches - one the lion passant for sterling standard and the other W.L for the silversmith William Lord.

This is a very fine example in excellent condition.