Need help, please. Is this teapot antique silver?

I had the teapot checked at a jewelry repair shop hoping to know more about it. The jeweler said it is only a plated reproduction. Is that true? What about the markings? Thank you very much in advance for any information you can share.

 

Welcome, curiousmedz. We'll need a better look at those marks on the bottom, but from what little I can make out, I think your jeweler may be right. At least the surface does not appear to be silver.

 

Has the look of pewter to me but WDIK.

Helping the OP out a bit:

 

Hi. If it was an antique, I would suspect there would be signs of wear. Do you see any scratches on the bottom, marks or dings. Does the interior look like it ever held tea?

 

Likely to have been made of the alloy called Paktong - similar to what in the West we call "German silver" or alpacca and Nickel silver.

 

That's cast. Probably a zinc tin lead mix.

 

Older Tetsubin were generally made of cast iron,some were also inlaid w/various types of metals including gold and silver.
This could be as suggested a more modern alloy version.

 

thank you very much. i am happy to have found this forum. there are so much information here. i have read some of the previous posts and i found the threads very helpful.

 

thank you for replying. i am very happy and grateful for all the replies and the time you all spared for my post. yes, when i first got the teapot, the stains were all over it. i scrubbed it clean with baking soda and salt until the inside became whiter. there are some scratches too, and the scratches are shiny and white. i am thinking of scrubbing the exterior too so the shine will come out but my sister said i will be ruining it if it is really antique so i should have it checked by a jeweler first. and that's how it came to this. i'm sorry, realized i didn't have good quality pictures of the teapot, i will try to take more focused close up pictures when i get home. but most scratches are on the side, not much on the bottom.

 

Your sister is right - do not try to make the outside shinier. It won't work and will ruin the look the maker intended!