St. James the Greater Silver Apostle Spoon, 1609 Cawdell

This excellent silver apostle spoon was made by one of the all-time premier spoonmakers and features St. James the Greater to the terminal.

James was the son of Zebedee and brother to St. John. He is termed as "the greater" because he became an apostle before the second St. James ("the lesser"). His emblem is a long pilgrim's staff which he is holding in the right hand. This is an expertly modelled apostle figure and includes a nimbus to James's head unusually featuring a Tudor Rose. The spoon's bowl is typically fig-shaped and has a hexagonal stem.

The spoon has a good weight in the hand and is in excellent condition. There is a clear set of London hallmarks that includes the "C enclosing a W" maker's mark for William Cawdell.

Cawdell was the most important spoonmaker of the late 16th and early 17th century. His output was prolific and the quality of his spoons were the best of the late Tudor period. His distinctive style of maker's mark was later copied by his apprentices (James Cluatt, Martin Cottrell and John Jermyn) that succeeded him.