Can anyone read these marks on a pewter jug?

I picked this up for $3.00 today at a sale. I thought it would be nice to use as a vase and I liked the shape. It is marked England (which I can read) but the 4 shield marks have me stumped. I figure they are probably fake marks designed to fool people into thinking this is really something. As far as I can tell, the first shield is a shield, the second shield looks as if it is a dog, the third shield is either a man or a cat, and the fourth is a candle. I may be completely wrong on all of those marks. The jug weighs just over a pound and is 5 1/4" tall, and 6 and 1/4" back of handle to tip of spout, and 3 and 1/4" on the bottom. This is really just to satisfy my curiosity. Thanks for any help.

 

If the last picture were to be retaken with natural light to eliminate the flash burn, then cropped to the just the letter area the marks would probably be readable; as it is I'd say it's some mid 20th C British pewter company who made a Jacobean style jug when that sort of thing was fashionable.

 

They were taken with natural light outside. I deleted the ones that were taken with the flash. The marks are just not impressed well. I thought they were probably just made to impress a gullible buyer. Thanks for looking.

 

The pictures displays severe overexposure grading to severe underexposure in a few inches, this is usually an artifact of flash, unusual to see it in natural light.

Stepping back a couple of feet, taking the picture in high resolution, then cropping to just the letters, followed by a contrast enhancement would probably make them legible.

I don't think any buyer would be notably impressed, they would know they were buying a new sparrowbeak jug.

 

Can't really make out the hallmarks but for 3 bucks that's a really nice pot!!

 

Thank you. I bought it for myself and I won't worry if it gets ruined by putting flowers in it.

 

After editing the touchmark pic, I can more or less make out 2 of the marks. The 2nd from our left is an animal head. The far right is a sword in a shield. I think they are:

"Pseudo 'Hallmarks' on British pewter since c.1635. Usually four in number. Likely meant to simulate silver hallmarks."

Pseudo "hallmarks" were used on British pewter since the 1600s. Lots of early American pewter have pseudo hallmarks also. According a very good pewter website that is no longer operating because the owner died a few years ago, pewter makers in several countries like the Netherlands, etc... used pseudo marks. Following is a copy of a page from that website that talks about pseudo hallmarks. Do note that many of them are in shield shape punches, that a sword in a shield and similar animal head were used. Am also including an edited version of your marks. At the moment I can't honestly date this jug of creamer. With the "England" stamp would usually mean after the 1890s, but then again, this might have been American made with England stamp. Back when many were attracted by England made silver over American made. The punch on the left is probably conjoined letters. If we could make them out, we might be able to ID the maker?

--- Susan

 

The sans serif font for ENGLAND says 20th C to me.

 

Thank you for sharing that information.