Silver scrap and let's play a game!

Mr Nate, I have a question, not about the quizzes specifically but about silver plate in general.

A scrapper once told me a tarnished piece that is very blue is most likely silver plate. Was he pulling my leg?

 

I can confirm that @Marie Forjan .

 

Blue or really rainbowed; they're both apt to be plate. Then again, I found some (now scrapped) dish thingies with greenies that weren't plate.

That Whiting piece looks legit from here, but I've been fooled in the past. I just donated a $10 mistake to a charity thrift. It looked like silver, felt like silver and even smelled like it but didn't have marks. No silver.

 

I think I know what he was referring too and I agree.

Silverplate over copper usually has an even reddish or blue tone that’s pretty easy to spot.

The old quadruple plate with white or special metal is also easy to see.

For modern pieces I’m frequently looking for quality clues: ugly joints on the feet of a bowl, patterns that don’t appear to be etched by hand etc.

I get fooled initially by the look of reed and Barton Silverplate, it usually looks right to me until I see the marks. I suspect it’s the amount of silver overlay they use.

 

Might mention that Reed & Barton's silverplate 'Color-Glaze' holloware, if in good condition, usually sells fairly well...

~Cheryl

 

Thanks everyone for your answers

 

I always suspect a gold looking piece that has that oil slick rainbow is gilt silver. Have never tested it out, but I take it as a caution that piece is not gold.

 

Just lurking through the quizzes. What fun!

Thanks for the lessons, @MrNate .

 

It didn't take very long for the bowls to arrive, here you go folks, I paid $64 total for all three (this is how they arrived, I haven't even polished them):

 

Yippee! Score!!

 

Forgot the weight:

 

Woo Hoo, you rock Mr Nate congrats!!

 

Bingo!