Magnificent Solid Silver Cutlery. Germany. XIX CENTURY.

Magnificent Solid Silver Cutlery. Germany. S.XIX. Cutlery of 17 pieces in silver (one knife is missing). This is a cutlery set for six guests made entirely of solid silver. It comes perfectly distributed in a beautiful oval front case with cushioned interior in striking red satin. It consists of 6 spoons, 5 knives and 6 forks of four tines. The knives are engraved with the German silver marks (moon, crown and 800) and the silversmith's hallmark. In Germany, a stamp of a crown and a crescent moon was introduced from 1888 to indicate silver purity of at least 80%. All pieces appear decorated with a sinuous cut handle undoubtedly marked by a beautiful and delicate vegetal decoration chiseled in Victorian style. All the parts are stamped, which attests to its value and antiquity. It is a very beautifully made cutlery, with a very defined style and an enormous decorativeness in all the cutlery. The concept of cutlery as such is relatively recent, specifically from the 18th century. Most of the spoons are made from the sixteenth century, and there is no evidence of the development of "matching spoons" until the late seventeenth century. Forks appeared later, in France in the middle of the 17th century, and with only two prongs at the beginning. The knife was the third to develop in England after the time of Charles II, where we find examples where the handle has sometimes been made of other materials, such as wood or ceramics. In fact it is in the handles of these three pieces where the decoration is carried out with the most varied and elaborate forms as in this case the fantastic floral decoration. At the end of the 19th century, the desire of the wealthier classes to show their status in pieces as decorative as this cutlery stands out. This type of pieces are characterized by decoration of varied ornamental motifs with a mixture of styles marked by the search for new forms, above all very decorative. Beautiful and decorative cutlery perfect for use on special occasions. Measures: 21 cm (length spoon), 20,5 cm (length fork) and 25,5 cm (length knives). Weight of spoons and forks: 1190 gr. Weight without knives 778 gr.