Hey folks, happy weekend! I found this little sterling silver thingy at the flea market, but I can't just figure out what this is and who the maker is. Dating would be helpful too Any ideas? Never seen anything like this before. Height approx. 3 cm and diameter approx. 8 cm (3.1 inches). I don't what it is, but I love it Thank you in advance!
Tetley brought the idea of the tea bag to the UK first in 1939. Yet, only Lipton introduced it to the UK market in 1952 when they patented their “flo-thru” teabag. This new way of consuming tea didn't take on in Britain as in the United States
Pretty sure it's a tea ball stand w/drip tray, your mark came into use in 1898, at the same time they instituted the letter prefix on the production numbers, would date no later than the early '30s and probably quite a bit earlier - 'A' was supposed to be on tableware, but apparently tea accessories were put into the 'B' group, like 'C', sort of catch-all categories. Don't have the time to do much checking around, but here are some links to a couple by other manufacturers: https://www.rubylane.com/item/1061514-0015-7348/Tea-Ball-Stand-Whiting-Sterling-1890x27s https://www.etsy.com/listing/117154...how_sold_out_detail=1&ref=nla_listing_details A Gorham tea ball, same era as your piece, the seller's dating is incorrect, the 'B' prefix is not Gorham's 1869 'B' date code, which would be stamped alone, not prefixing the pattern number: https://www.etsy.com/listing/205159...how_sold_out_detail=1&ref=nla_listing_details And a bit earlier Gorham tea ball that's on my want-list: https://www.silverperfect.com/Inventory/tea items/grmmimtballdetail.html ~Cheryl
off base....back on base.....close enuf...........I knew it was something to do with tea !!! YAY... DRAGON !!!!!!
World's fanciest egg-separator!! ...or a tea-ball stand, either is good. Lovely piece! NOW SALLY FORTH and returnst thou not, 'til thou hast procured a sterling silver tea-ball!!
I love silver tea balls! I don’t know why but they are such neat and tactile little objects. Each a bit different from the next. Found a nice one in a lot of “silver plate” I bought recently. Even made by Tiffany & Co. That was a nice surprise. I guess I’ll also need a tea ball strainer to shove in the same box and peek at every few years or so.
