posted 03-09-2006 09:33 PM            

I'm an almost-beginner, interested especially in New England coin silver, and here are the books I've relied on for the past few years:

1. Martha Gandy Fales - Early American Silver for the Cautious Collector, Funk & Wagnalls, 1970 (great introduction to American silver)
   
2. Martha Gandy Fales - The Heritage Foundation Collection of Silver, Heritage Foundation, 1968 (marks and short biographies of important N.E. silversmiths)
   
3. Kovels' American Silver Marks, Crown, 1989
   
4. Rainwater, Encyclopedia, Schiffer, 1998
   
5. Ensko, American Silversmiths and their Marks IV, Godine, 1989
   
6. Graham Hood, American Silver: A history of Style 1650-1900, Dutton, 1989
   
7. Dr. John McGrew, Manufacturers' Marks on American Coin Silver, Sheridan, 2004
   
8. Donald Fennimore, Flights of Fancy: American Silver Bird-decorated Spoons, Winterthur Museum, 2000
   
9. Sotheby's Catalog, The Collection of Mr. & Mrs. Walter M. Jeffords, 2004
   
10. Millicent Stow, American Silver, The Collectors' Library, Gramercy

posted 03-09-2006 09:54 PM            

Of course, I started looking up all the stuff I have in the books for fun. Ensko is just lists of names, but has some nice pictures. Also, Ensko includes a lot of early Americans that Rainwater doesn't. Example:
D.N. Dole (1810)is in Ensco, but not Rainwater. Jones, Ball and Co. is also in Ensko, but neglected in Rainwater. In fact, the whole Jones, Ball partnerships (Boston early/mid 1800's) are only partially listed with no years or even 'Boston' for any of them, just the names(?). On the other hand...Rainwater has a nice blurb on John Polhamus and clear information on the major players including modern day silversmith's.

I can see how a whole encyclopedia of books might just barely cover things.

posted 03-25-2006 10:56 PM            

Her book "Early American Silver" was one of the first books I purchased on silver and I still enjoy reading it and all the other excellent books she wrote. Her books should be on everyone's reading list and I think are particularly helpful to those just beginning to have an interest in American silver.

posted 03-26-2006 01:50 PM            

ahwt, thank you for the information about Mrs. Fales' death. She must have been a wonderful lady to know. The first real exhibition of silver I visited was the Heritage Foundation's collection at Old Deerfield; I was smitten and her book about that was my first "silver book." "Early American Silver" soon followed but so did a long gap while children and other pursuits took up my attention and time. Fairly recently I've picked up my interest again and acquired the rest of the books on my list, as well as others equally useful. But I still agree with you that Mrs. Fales' books should be at the top of a beginner's list.