Chang Yu
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Tea Sets
Sterling Silver
People Also Browsed
20th Century American Art Deco Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Enamel
20th Century English Victorian Armchairs
Leather
Antique 19th Century English Baroque Animal Sculptures
Marble
Early 20th Century Russian Picture Frames
Diamond, Silver, Enamel
Antique 19th Century Japanese Meiji Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
Antique 15th Century and Earlier Tang Animal Sculptures
Pottery
Antique 19th Century French Empire Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Tin
Antique 15th Century and Earlier Chinese Tang Sculptures and Carvings
Terracotta
20th Century French Art Deco Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Silver, Brass
Antique Early 1700s Chinese Chinese Export Porcelain
Porcelain
Antique 19th Century Unknown Rococo Fireplace Tools and Chimney Pots
Bronze, Ormolu
Antique 19th Century Czech Bohemian Vases
Enamel
Antique 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture
Brass
Antique 1890s American Louis XVI Fireplace Tools and Chimney Pots
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Candelabras
Crystal, Ormolu
Antique 15th Century and Earlier Chinese Other Antiquities
Pottery
Recent Sales
Antique 19th Century Chinese Other Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Finding the Right sterling-silver for You
Dining and entertaining changed drastically when we began to set our tables with sterling silver for holiday gatherings, wedding receptions, engagement parties and, in some of today’s homes, everyday meals.
Often called the “Queen of metals,” silver has been universally adored for thousands of years. It is easy to see why it has always been sought after: It is durable, strong and beautiful. (Louis XIV had tables made entirely of silver.) Sterling silver is an alloy that is made of 92.5 percent silver — the “925” stamp that identifies sterling-silver jewelry refers to this number. The other 7.5 percent in sterling silver is typically sourced from copper.
Neoclassical-style sterling-silver goods in Europe gained popularity in the late 18th century — a taste for sterling-silver tableware as well as tea sets had taken shape — while in the United States, beginning in the 19th century, preparing the dinner table with sterling-silver flatware had become somewhat of a standard practice. Indeed, owning lots of silver goods during the Victorian era was a big deal. Back then, displaying fine silver at home was a status symbol for middle-class American families. And this domestic silver craze meant great profitability for legendary silversmith manufacturers such as Reed & Barton, Gorham Manufacturing Company and the International Silver Company, which was incorporated in Meriden, Connecticut, in 1898, a major hub of silver manufacturing nicknamed “Silver City.”
Today, special occasions might call for ceremonial silver designed by Tiffany & Co. or the seductive sterling-silver cutlery from remarkable Danish silversmith Georg Jensen, but there really doesn’t have to be an event on the calendar to trot out your finest tableware.
Event- and wedding-planning company maestro Tara Guérard says that some “investment pieces,” such as this widely enamored alloy, should see everyday use, and we’re inclined to agree.
“Sterling-silver flatware is a must-have that you can use every single day, even to eat cereal,” she says. “Personally, I want a sterling-silver goblet set for 12 to 20; I would use them every time I had a dinner party. Ultimately, there are no criteria for buying vintage pieces: Buy what you love, and make it work.”
Whether you’re thinking “ceremonial” or “cereal,” browse a versatile collection of vintage, new and antique sterling-silver wares on 1stDibs today.