Possibly Egyptian or Sudanese lidded jar

Good Day

I have a small jar with a hinged lid. Its diameter is about 4cm and height about 3cm. I have reason to believe it came from Egypt or the Sudan. It was acquired from someone who lived in Egypt both before and after the First World War. The interior appears gilded (or could it just be silver plated brass?).

I photographed the marks before and after polishing it. Before polishing one mark looked clearly like SR surmounted by a crown. After cleaning the SR is far less clear. I will post both sets of photos.

Informed help would be appreciated.

 

Neither of the above. Take a look at the marks of Simon Rosenau of Hanau, Germany.

http://www.925-1000.com/Fgerman_hanau_marks_01.html

 

Thank you for that quick response.

That is very interesting because I have identified another item of her silver (presented to her by an admirer in 1919) as being German silver made by Wilhelm Binder - Schwabisch Gmund. The Germans had a strong influence in the Ottoman Empire before the First World War so I suppose it is not surprising that German silverware found its way to Egypt around those times.

Here is the hallmark of that piece (a small vase). I gather the Crescent and Crown are the marks that identify German silver:


It seems that the Hanau silversmiths were a rather disreputable bunch (see http://www.ascasonline.org/articolox15.html). I wonder what older hallmarks Simon Rosenau was imitating on my piece? Or am I misunderstanding the situation?

 

Nice! You are correct about the crescent moon and crown being the modern (1886 forward) national mark for Germany. And although I did eventually realize that the rather odd-shaped blob on the left in the marks image for your little jar, it was the crowned SR and the 800 that sent me to Hanau immediately. The makers there were known for their "pseudo marks" - florid and abundant - and many did not use the moon and crown in the mix. Their markings borrowed heavily from other jurisdictions (France and other German city states in particular) in an attempt to nudge buyers into thinking the wares were from elsewhere. Some established business relationships with British importers - but those had to be assayed and marked in the UK, making for an awful lot of marks on those!

 

Something has gone wrong with your second sentence ... what was it you realised about the "odd-shaped blob on the left"? I'm intrigued

 

oops! The blob is the crescent moon and crown. See the tiny cross on the top of the crown?

 

If it looks European, it often is. Items travel, have done since the early days of human crafts, even in Neanderthal times.
I live in the Netherlands and have silver (jewellery) from all over the globe. My collection has seen more of the world than I have.