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 SMP Silver Salon Forums
 Silverplate Forum
 Iranian engraved silverplate?
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| Author | Topic: Iranian engraved silverplate? |
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Carma Posts: 5 |
posted 08-07-2001 01:49 AM
  
Hello again, My question this time concerns a set of vases which are silverplate over something very heavy. The appraiser who originally valued the estate of my uncle, including these vases, described them as being Iranian. This appraiser also described the matchbox covers in my prior post as sterling, and several other items were misidentified, as it turns out. It was a very large estate, and no appraiser knows everything about everything, so I am doing some further research on a few other items. I have not been able to find anything online or in books about silver in Iran. There are marks on the bottom, which I have pictured, but I sure can't make head nor tail of them. There is another picture of the large vase in the set. It's about 9" tall and the carving is extremely elaborate, all kinds of fanciful flora and mythical fauna. There are also two matching smaller vases about 2" tall. Any ideas or clues as to country of origin and age would be most welcome. Or if I missed a research source, please point me in the general direction. (Under the marks is incised the number 9616. I couldn't quite fit it in the photo.) Thanks! IP: Logged |
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Martine Posts: 55 |
posted 08-10-2001 01:46 AM
I don't recognize the marks. Did the appraiser receive information about the vases from your uncle or someone else in the family? Basically, many reference books are written (and are available) in response to a strong interest in the subjects. In the antiques and decorative arts market, vases like yours are not highly sought after. I don't think that anyone has ever asked me for Iranian metalwork ever. I even doubt that in Iran, they care about vases such as these. Unfortunately, there is so much different stuff in this world, that it is not possible for everything to be in books to be looked up in regards to their history and value. I guess you could try to find someone to test the vases for actual metal content. Even if they were all silver and not silverplated, they would still be only worth their value in scrap. They are just decorative pieces. And to your family, they would be worth more in sentimental value. You are right, it is impossible for an appraiser to be expert in everything. They work on an hourly basis, so they try to focus on the obvious valuables. The lesser odd things might be listed in a briefer fashion, but to their credit, they don't try to "milk the clock" on the junk. Also, for estate purposes, they take a conservative fair market value on the goods, rather than high insurance replacement values (so less estate tax). It is always good to double-check values anyway. Hopefully you have the time and inclination to do so. Good luck and I hope you find some treasures for your effort. IP: Logged |
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Carma Posts: 5 |
posted 08-12-2001 01:44 AM
Thank you, Martine. The reason I was checking on these vases and the matchbox covers was that the estate appraiser had valued them (and quite a few similar items) extremely high. There was no input from my uncle about anything, these had been in storage for many, many years and he probably had forgotten all about them by the time he died. Anyway, they were then put on consignment in an antique shop and priced even higher than the appraisals. I am trying to convince other family members that just because there has been this dollar value assigned to them by the experts, doesn't mean that anybody will ever pay it, and maybe we should just let the stuff go. Your input has been very helpful to my cause! Thanks again, Carma IP: Logged |
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melissa unregistered |
posted 08-12-2001 08:22 AM
Hello Carma. Your photos did not come thru, but Tardy's says that Iran did not mandate a mark on silver until 1967. To discribe is fairly easy, the face of a lion that appears to be gripping a sword (the Lion of God, I suppose). If the cartouche is double-framed the silver is .900, single .840. I hope this helps you. Good luck in your search. Melissa IP: Logged |
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Martine Posts: 55 |
posted 08-12-2001 08:05 PM
I would recommend taking your family on a field trip to one of the Brimfield, Massachusetts Antique Shows. It is a huge week-long outsdoor event held three times a year. One of my favorite observations on this event was one from a woman passing through. She said that she wished that she and her sister could have walked through the show together before dividing up her parent's estate. I guess that it was a pretty ugly affair. thanks to seeing all the heaps of stuff (just sitting there), this woman realized that what her parents had was nothing to fight over. IP: Logged |
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Carma Posts: 5 |
posted 08-13-2001 03:33 PM
Melissa-Thanks for the research. I'm sure these vases are not sterling (they are very heavy), and I'm pretty sure they were made before 1967, so the marks are probably just maker's marks, whose origin may be lost to history forever. Martine-Wouldn't I love to see the antiques show you mentioned, even without my family! But we all live in Oregon, and unfortunately there is nothing like that around here. I am not actually an heir to all this wonderful stuff, just the (sort of) step-cousin charged with disposing of what was left unsold when the antiques shop closed down. In this case there was apparently no sentimental value to anything in the estate, they all just want the cash! This has been a very educational experience, and thanks again for your input. I think it's time for a big garage sale. IP: Logged |
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Martine Posts: 55 |
posted 08-14-2001 01:26 PM
Well take them all out to any large antique show. Even go the first day and the last day of the event. Take notes. And remind them that there is a huge difference between the selling price and the sitting around price. Actually, it would be neat to rent a show place with your family and try to sell some of the stuff yourselves. Many times people are reluctant to sell things to dealers for fear that they didn't get the full value. But dealers have lots of expenses like rent and vehicle costs. And what is anybody's time really worth? And the money gotten for the things will grow faster interest-wise that keeping them. If you family ever gets tired of the stuff, they could always consign it to an auction gallery and let it go at no reserve. Hopefully the check at the end will be worth dividing up. Years ago, my aunts got some jewelry from their grandmother. They ruined the pieces by having some of it reset. Anyway, they are so in love with the appraisal values, which were insurance replacement values (very high). Fair market value is about half of those numbers. And a dealer would pay about half of that. So there is a pair of small earrings that I would love to buy for myself for sentimental reasons, but I could never afford to buy them from my aunts. I am better off buying something nicer from an antique shop for less money. IP: Logged |
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