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The form of spoons evolved through the 15th and into the 16th century. The top and bottom facets of the stem widened, perhaps to accommodate hallmarks. On London spoons these consisted of the crowned Leopard’s Head in the bowl with the maker’s mark, lion passant and date letter on the back of the stem. Spoons from provincial towns without an assay office would normally be marked in the bowl with a maker’s/workshop mark or a town mark. This mark might be repeated on the stem or other marks added there at the whim of the maker.
New, more sculptural finials replaced the diamond and acorn tops. These new finials were separately cast and soldered to the stem. A short v-shaped heel on the bowl became standard. These features can all be seen on this Maidenhead spoon by William Cawdell, London, 1592, 6.4 inches long. I'll say a little more about Maidenhead spoons later when I come to finials with religious symbolism.
Finials were normally gilded, as was the whole spoon sometimes. Traces of the gilding will usually remain and it is not uncommon for a finial to have been re-gilded, though it has not happened in this case. |
