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Message:: [QUOTE="Mecklenburg Vintage Man, post: 1028176, member: 12396"]Hello all! I found this wonderful site on a recent search, and would like to add to the "hive mind" some information I have found over the years about this subject. I have been collecting pieces in the Ingrid line, designed by Royal Arden Hickman for Three Crowns Silversmiths in Pottstown, PA, for about 15 years now. It all started with finding a Salad Server set in an antique mall. They were so hefty and wonderfully made that I was certain they were mis-marked as "silverplate" rather than sterling. Some online searching quickly corrected my mis-impression. ;-) Three Crowns Silversmiths started producing this line in 1946, and ended around 1960. It was designed by Royal Hickman to fulfill a desire for Swedish-looking, minimalist pieces in the Mid-Century Modern sensibility. The hallmark does indeed consist of three pointed crowns (2 above, 1 below), which is similar to the Swedish Sterling mark, but not enclosed in the "cat's paw" like the Swedish mark. [ATTACH=full]207722[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]207723[/ATTACH] There are several design elements that are used, variously or in combination, on these pieces. I'll attempt to describe them for informational purposes only. Composition:The vast majority of pieces in this line are silver plated over copper or brass. Once in a while you may see the salad servers in brass or brass and copper with either smooth handles or fluted lengthwise.I did see a salad set that was stamped "sterling" near the hallmark, but couldn't verify that.Overzealous polishing can result in the plating wearing completely off, showing only as the base copper or brass. The row of small beads:Many of the holloware pieces and almost all of the flatware and serving pieces use this element. Holloware bowls and pitchers usually have a simple ribbon handle with this beadwork row. Sometimes the beads are in a straight line - sometimes in a gentle curve. Occasionally, I see the salad servers with unadorned handles.[ATTACH=full]207707[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]207708[/ATTACH] Disk and Chain base:Holloware pieces are most often found with a very sturdy base which consists of a large, washer-like, circular disk that rests on the table, with a circling of chain or roping, and the bowl on top of that. The base is largely openworked, and you can peer through the open disk from the bottom and see through the gaps in the chain.[ATTACH=full]207715[/ATTACH] Other times, the base can be just three simple balls, attached to the base of the bowl. Finials:Hickman designed a unique finial in a biomorphic form that looks like something between an orchid and a scorpion. The up-curved "tail" serving as the handle on lidded pieces, such as a sugar bowl. The elements of this feature are discrete, and the "petals" or "leaves" do not rest on the surface, but just touch it at the center and tips.Sometimes this form appears in the middle of a piece, such as the stem of a candlestick.[ATTACH=full]207718[/ATTACH] Oddly enough, just yesterday in an online search, I saw a finial for a side-handle creamer that was a stylized tropical fish, and a sugar and creamer set that had the same fish mounted as handles on the sides.I've also seen a simple ball finial, though I can't verify that that might not have been added to replace a lost original finial. I think that this is a good start. Please feel free to comment or update this thread with information about these wonderful pieces. I plan to list the items in my own personal collection in a later post, just to illustrate the vast range of items produced by Three Crowns Silversmiths. (Everything from Salad Server sets to a Gravy Boat with a stand and warmer!)[/QUOTE]

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