Help with sterling maker, please

Happy New Year to All! This set was found at Goodwill by a friend of my daughter! They have asked if I can help with age and maker. I'm not familiar with the mark. Need your help, please! Anyone not out ringing in the new year? These are the pictures they sent/best pics I have. The mark, a hand with the word sterling, is on bottom of all pieces except the tray. Tray is marked with just the word Silver. Thanks Much.

 

this page shows an open hand mark for silver. It is hard to tell howclose it matches your mark. But take a look. It says it is from Malta 1798-1800.Nothing about the word sterling though.

http://hallmarkwiki.com/?country=Malta

http://hallmarkwiki.com/?ShowHallmark=11477

Wait for Bakersgma to check in, She is great with silver Marks. I don't know much, I just found that by googling.

 

Thanks, Bdigger. I should have mentioned that I googled it also and actually found the same thing....almost. I thought maybe it looked more oval, which gave me a crazy old date in the 1600s!! That's when I lost trust in myself and came here.
http://hallmarkwiki.com/?country=Germany (Allemagne)

 

Hi Libby! Happy New Year!

I have to admit that my first look at the set had me thinking India or Middle Eastern, but seeing the Sterling stamp has me rethinking that. Then I saw Bdigger's post about Malta - had the same issue with the word sterling. But that sent me looking for more info on Malta. Which took me here - http://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=33204

Scroll down about 3/4's of the way down the landing page and you will see at least 3 different versions of the Malta "open hand" mark. But you will also see that when it was used there were other marks that accompanied it - and no Sterling.

I would also discount those German examples for the same reason.

Sorry that all that leaves us back at square one. Maybe Cheryl will see this tomorrow and better thoughts than ! did.

 

And a Very Happy New Year to you, too!

So it looks like this might not be cut and dry, huh? When I googled it, I found variables to the mark that I couldn't really confirm from the picture....right hand, left hand, some hands have a square block (don't see that on this one), shape of cartouche....Beyond my knowledge. I have faith someone (Cheryl ) will know.

 

It appears to date from about 1900. I'd chack the purity with an XRF test and then weigh them in or add them to my silver hoard.
There looks to be at least 2 kilos of silver there and nowadays it is just about impossible to get more than scrap value for teasets or trays.

 

The hand appears to have only two fingers and a thumb. Could that be a clue, or is the photo just not clear enough to show the articulation of all of the fingers?

 

and a Happy New Year back to everyone.

After trying to edit one of the pics, I agree with Fig on 2 fingers and thumb or 3 fingers. Hmmmm...I guess it could be a saguaro cactus of Arizona. I haven't had any luck on IDing this hand mark either. According to Tardy's International Hallmarks on SILVER, several countries used an up raised open hand hallmark at one time or another. Examples:
1. France's cities of Monpellier - crowned open right hand, Besancon Communautes - 2 fingers and thumb right hand 15th century, Nantes - full/open right hand, Dijon Communantes - full right hand, Paris 1762-1768 countermark - full/open right hand.
2. Belgium Antwerp - a variety of full left and right hands with all crowned.
3. Germany: Schwabisch Hall 16th century-18th century - full/open hand with cross in the middle, Aiz-la-Chapelle - full/open right hand.
4. As already mentioned Malta - full/open left hand.
5. Russia - 2 fingers raised blessing hand from the 17th century.

Not any of them come close to this mark. I'm wondering if it is a marker's mark and not a country's hallmark. I haven't looked for a 3 finger maker's mark yet.

--- Susan

 

maybe it's a paw print

 

Susan...my pictures of the mark were cropped pretty small, making it difficult for you to edit and get good pics. Here are the originals. Maybe you'll have better luck with these (presumptuous of me to assume you have nothing better to do than edit my pics...TWICE, huh? )
I'm also going to have my daughter see if she can get an actual piece for me to look at/photograph myself! The owners may not be comfortable with that idea...worth a try though. I've already asked for better pictures. This is the best they can do!

Thank you, Susan, for your help with this! Thanks also to AF and Fig....Bakers and digger, too, of course

 

Ooppps, I hadn't been back to this thread since I posted. I didn't know you had posted more pics. I worked with this pics in hopes of better seeing the mark. In trying to get a closer look at the mark, I had to severely crop a pic down to the mark. By getting this closer look enlarged the mark and causes some distorting. The mark may be a bit easier to see, but still haven't been able to ID it. Following are edited versions.

--- Susan

 

Pics are unclear, but doesn't really look like a hand to me, nor do I see any great age, especially considering the marks - would agree with AF on dating to around 1900, or perhaps even later.

Can't tell from these pics, do the handles on the waiter match those on the tea set? Believe it's more likely a maker's mark than one associated to a particular country, and if the tray is a match, the use of 'Silver' might narrow down the country of origin a bit...

~Cheryl