~Below is my original post on the bowl. After posting it, I received a nice note from a reader letting me know this bowl is a fake. At the end of this post is more information on the faker~
Below is an Irish silver bowl that dates to 1798 in the reign of George III. Although the bowl is later than I normally collect, it reminds me of earlier forms. It measures 4 1/8 inches in diameter (10.5 cm) and 2 3/8 inches (6 cm) in height, is of heavy gauge, and is plain with a lovely hammered finish.
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| Strawberries. Yum. |
The maker's mark on the bowl is IE surrounded by pellets. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to attribute this mark to a silversmith. The only Dublin maker's mark of IE referenced by Douglas Bennett that fits the date of the bowl is James England, who worked from 1791-1815 (167). However, James England's punch is not surrounded by pellets.
Does anyone have an idea who this maker is?
I believe this would have been used as a sugar bowl. Or could it have been a waste bowl?
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| Hallmarks on bowl |
UPDATE: IT'S A FAKE!! After a tipster let me know this bowl was a fake, I have to admit I was a bit disappointed, but I also had this thought: "I thought it was not quite right!". I like the bowl, it was not expensive, but before and after buying it, something about it nagged me. It didn't seem to fit the design of sugar bowls of the 1790s in Ireland. However, I brushed away the nagging feeling and bought it anyway without doing as much research as I should have.
A friend of mine reminded me that this faker is dealt with by Bennett in his Collecting Irish Silver. About the faker, Bennett has this to say: "'IE' is well known to both the London and Dublin assay offices, where examples of his work are kept for reference. (Do they want mine?) Many an antique dealer has been caught out with these marks, and the only clue that can be offered is to watch out for the distinctive maker's mark of 'IE' with small beads encircling the initials" (242).
Distinctive maker's mark, indeed. Has anyone else fallen into IE's trap?
Bennett, Douglas. Collecting Irish Silver. London: Souvenir Press Ltd., 1984. Print.
