New York Classical Coin Silver Serving Tongs by William Gale & Son

Classical coin silver christening mug. Made by Tifft & Whiting in North Attleboro, Mass., ca 1850. Straight and tapering sides with beaded rims. Three name...

Classical coin silver baby cup, circa 1850. Tapering bowl with flared rim and curved bottom. Double-scroll handle with graduated beading. Stepped foot. Chased leafing and flowering f...

Classical coin silver baby cup. Made by Eoff & Connor, a partnership active in New York from 1833 to 1835. Bellied bowl with drum-form neck, flared rim, and capped s-scroll handle; r...

Large Classical coin silver teapot. Made by William Thomson in New York in 1833. Bellied bowl on stepped and raised foot; cover hinged and domed with flower-basket finial. Leaf-cappe...

Medallion wine ewer designed by William Gale & Son. Very rare and important piece of the American silversmith history. This fabulous wine ewer was made by the William Gale & Son Company, just five years before the American Civil War (1861-1865) in the 1856. The rich design and the delicate composition reflects the extreme opulence of the northern United States in these period and the degree of sophistication when serving a table. By other part, this wine ewer is full of symbolisms, where the degree of knowledge and understanding of the characters of Greek and Roman mythology is demonstrated. This one-of-a-kind piece was carefully crafted with impeccable details in solid .925/.999 sterling silver. It is fully decorated with ancient Etruscan and Greek revival patterns and architectural neo-classic elements, such the small two balusters and the rosettes located in the handle. The most significant are the two medallions depicting the classical figures of the helmeted & bearded portrait bust of Dionysus and the portrait bust of his daughter Methe, wearing a diadem made of vine leaves. This rare pitcher has a total weight of 750.43 grams and a measure of 12 by 7.5 inches (30.5 x 19 cm). The base has a diameter of 4.75 inches (12 cm). Fully stamped in the underneath, with the silver assay hallmarks, the maker's cartouche GS, the year of production 1856 and signed in full, "W. GALE & SON NEW YORK .925 STERLING GS 1856". Dionysus, (Bacchus for the Romans), was the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking and wine, of fertility, orchards and fruit, vegetation, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity and theatre in the ancient Greek culture. The iconographic theme on this sheet refer to the legend of the triumph of Dionysus, or as the Romans called him, Bacchus the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, the son of Zeus and Semele. The Bacchanalia was a religious festival in honor of the wine god, Dionysus. Methe, was the goddess-nymph of drunkenness in the ancient Greek mythology. She was the daughter and companion of the god Dionysus. She was also the wife of Staphylos (bunch of grapes) and mother of Botrys (grapes). History: The founder of the firm was William Gale (1799-1867) and the company was located in the number 447 at Broome street in New York. W. Gale invented and patented in 1826 a process for making spoons with ornamental patterns by cutting the ornament on rollers, both the upper and the lower rollers being cut with the pattern. this made the production of pattern spoons much less expensive than the former method of hand hammering patterns by the use of dies. William Gale was succeeded in the business by his son William Gale Jr. (1825-1885) who, after few years, ceased the control of the firm to H.B. Dominick & Leroy B. Haff until 1928 when the business was finally purchased by Reed & Barton. Note: The signature and hallmarks stamped at the bottom of this piece, correspond to the pieces produced before the US civil war...

An exceptional, fine and impressive, large pair of antique Victorian English sterling silver serving tongs; an addition to our silver flatware collection. These exceptional antique Victorian large sterling silver tongs have an oval shaped form. The surface of the blades of examples of sterling silver flatware are embellished with an impressive pierced and bright cut engraved scrolling leaf decoration accented with a central floral motif. The tapering stems are embellished with leaf textured design. The rounded handpieces are embellished with bright cut engraved scrolling leaf and floral decoration, incorporating vacant oval cartouches. The interior of the blades, stems and bridge are plain and unembellished. The pinching action of these antique silver tongs...

An exceptional, fine and impressive pair of antique Victorian English sterling silver fish servers - boxed; an addition to our silver flatware collection This exceptional pair of antique Victorian boxed silver fish servers, in sterling standard, consists of a serving knife and fork. The blade of the knife and the drop of the fork have an incurved shaped form. The anterior of the knife is embellished with a bright cut engraved band of leaf ornamentation paralleling the shaped side of the blade, accented with a suspended floral festoon and fabric swag designs. The drop of the fork is ornamented with further bright cut engraved floral festoon designs extending from a wrigglework decorated border to the lower portion of the four tines. The posterior surface of each shaped blade is plain and embellished with a paralleling scalloped border to the incurved edge. These antique fish servers...

1855 coin silver large gravy ladle by William Gale & Son, NY, NY. Fiddleback design. Monogram "MS". Heavy & handsome. 2.05 troy oz. 7 7/8" x 2 5/8" x 1.5". We are a family business...