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 SMP Silver Salon Forums
 American Silver before sterling
 Coin Silver in the 1870s
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| Author | Topic: Coin Silver in the 1870s |
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Brent Posts: 1507 |
posted 09-11-2008 09:23 AM
  
Hello all, Back on-line again! This past weekend I was able to look at a wholesale jewelry catalog from 1878. To my surprise, I found that among the offerings were finger rings AND napkin rings in coin silver. Conventional wisdom has it that "everyone" switched over to the sterling standard around 1868, aside from a few regional makers. However, it seems clear that some coin silver objects were being manufactured as late as 1878. I knew that the coin standard was used in watch cases long after 1870, but I did not suspect it to be true for napkin rings. Something to keep in mind! Brent IP: Logged |
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wev Moderator Posts: 4121 |
posted 09-11-2008 10:14 AM
Coin wares of all sorts were still available at the end of the century. See my post: "Observe the mark on the back" IP: Logged |
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Brent Posts: 1507 |
posted 09-11-2008 10:39 AM
Thanks, WEV! I had a feeling that this must have been discussed previously, but couldn't figure out how to find it. Anyway, more proof of something that is not widely known. Brent IP: Logged |
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Marc Posts: 414 |
posted 09-11-2008 11:02 AM
Hi guys, Two items come to mind. The first is... Did the government discontinue the coin silver standard (.900) by law? The second is... Would coin silver (being less expensive than sterling) have enough of a price advantage to make it more marketable in those later years? Happy to confuse the issue as always. Marc IP: Logged |
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swarter Moderator Posts: 2920 |
posted 09-11-2008 11:34 AM
As long as coins were being made to that standard it would have not been discontinued. Now that they are being clad, I don't know. If sheet silver is being stamped over the base metal, then it is probbly still of that standard. I believe I have seen Twentieth Century objects so stamped, but I can't cite an example at the moment. There may be issues concerning the workability of the metal versus Sterling that might influence its use - one of our silversmiths would have to address this point. IP: Logged |
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dragonflywink Posts: 993 |
posted 09-11-2008 12:02 PM
Section 296 of the National Stamping Act of 1906 defined .900 coin silver as one of our two silver standards and so far as I know, it remains the same. There was a 1961 amendment requiring that if a quality mark is used, there must also be the maker's name or registered trademark present. The following is from the 1996 Federal Trade Commission's Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries § 23.6 Misrepresentation as to silver content. (a) It is unfair or deceptive to misrepresent that an industry product contains silver, or to misrepresent an industry product as having a silver content, plating, electroplating, or coating. (b) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as "silver," "solid silver," "Sterling Silver," "Sterling," or the abbreviation "Ster." unless it is at least 925/1,000ths pure silver. (c) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as "coin" or "coin silver" unless it is at least 900/1,000ths pure silver. (d) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as being plated or coated with silver unless all significant surfaces of the product or part contain a plating or coating of silver that is of substantial thickness.8 (e) The provisions of this section relating to markings and descriptions of industry products and parts thereof are subject to the applicable tolerances of the National Stamping Act or any amendment thereof.9 Note 1 to § 23.6: The National Stamping Act provides that silverplated articles shall not "be stamped, branded, engraved or imprinted with the word ‘sterling’ or the word ‘coin,’ either alone or in conjunction with other words or marks." 15 U.S.C. 297(a).
[This message has been edited by dragonflywink (edited 09-11-2008).] IP: Logged |
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Dale Posts: 2132 |
posted 09-17-2008 12:25 AM
One consideration is that the color and refectiveness of the two are somewhat different. There probably remained quite a few people who prefered the look of coin. And were willing to pay for it. IP: Logged |
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ellabee Posts: 306 |
posted 09-17-2008 12:32 PM
quote: Dale and others: How would you characterize that difference? I've tried to compare the coin and sterling pieces here that are not too different in design and era in an effort to detect that difference, but without much success. Maybe a side-by-side comparison of coin and sterling pieces in the exact same pattern would do it. IP: Logged |
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ahwt Posts: 2334 |
posted 09-17-2008 10:11 PM
Quimby’s book “American Silver at Winterthur” provides the metal content of the objects shown in the book by the percentage they contain. For example the 1855 Eoff and Shepard teapot shown on page 216 has the following metals: Body side - 88.0 silver; 11.8 copper; .21 lead; and .05 gold Lid - 89.0 silver; 10.5 copper; .16 lead; and .06 gold Handle - 94.7 silver; 5.1 copper; .23 lead; and .06 gold Spout – 94.1 silver; 5.8 copper; .14 lead; and .06 gold Another example is the 1800 Isaac Hutton teapot shown on page 252: Body side 89.0 silver; 10.4 copper; .25 lead; and .11 gold A substantial variation in silver content appears to be repeated for most of the pieces shown in the book. As the variation occurs within the same piece see if you can tell differences within some of your own early American silver pieces as they most likely follow the pattern shown by Quimby. IP: Logged |
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swarter Moderator Posts: 2920 |
posted 09-18-2008 02:42 AM
The variation in content of early American silver is due to the fact that most was made from melted/remelted silver of various origins, and the lack of a a widely available source of standardized silver. Sterling has a more whitish cast than sub-sterling silver (to avoid the term "coin") which, due to a higher copper content, tends to a more bluish or grayish tone. Some say it can smell (or even taste) different, again probably from the copper content, although one might expect the pickling process to mask this. All very subjective, and due to the variations, more or less unreliable. Contrasting coin standard silver against Sterling should be easier than with pre-standard "coin.". [This message has been edited by swarter (edited 09-18-2008).] IP: Logged |
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argentum1 Posts: 602 |
posted 09-18-2008 07:35 AM
Just for information: There is a relatively new silver alloy on the market. It was invented and patented in the UK and goes by the Tradename 'Argentium Silver'. It has the same percentage of silver but part of the copper content has been replaced by Germanium. It is reported to be much less subject to tarnishing than Sterling Silver. Information is available by inputing just the word 'argentium'. Unfortunately I did not invent it nor did I take my username from it. Back to the original topic, Coin Silver is still available from suppliers of sheet silver. IP: Logged |
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Scott Martin Forum Master Posts: 11520 |
posted 09-18-2008 07:52 AM
See: IP: Logged |
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bascall Posts: 1629 |
posted 09-18-2008 02:38 PM
Is it possible that the lead as minute as it is in "coin" silver has much to do with its patina? IP: Logged |
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asheland Posts: 935 |
posted 09-27-2008 02:09 AM
I have seen some Handicraft shop pieces in coin silver. IP: Logged |
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Dale Posts: 2132 |
posted 09-30-2008 11:43 AM
Well ellabee, the difference has been pointed out to me by several collectors. At a show with incandescent and florescent lights it is a slight difference. However in dim light, such as candlelight which it was originally made for, coin silver does not reflect as much as sterling. Coin tends to have a blue tone while sterling has a pale gray tone. My color vision is not real reliable, but that is what I see. BTW, silverplate has a white tone. The other difference I find is that there is a slightly oily feel to coin, but not sterling. IP: Logged |
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