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 Silverplate Forum
 Meriden Britannia object
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| Author | Topic: Meriden Britannia object |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-29-2006 01:41 PM
  
Hello from Alaska. I have questions about an old tea/coffee pot recently discovered in the back of our shed! It's by Meriden Britannia Company and has their stamp and 55 on the bottom. What does the 55 stand for? It's quite dark, which I suppose is the base metal beneath the silverplate. What base metal did they use? The hummingbirds (will try attaching photo links)stand on branches and would fit into the large openings low on either side. I sure like the piece & asked the library for inter-library loan of the catalogue on Meriden B. Company. IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-29-2006 01:57 PM
The grand, Victorian item pictured above contd: how do you feel about silverplating old items such as this? Is that as bad as taking the finish off early American furniture, thus losing most of the charm? I wonder if it was tinned inside. Does anyone have a photo of this in use long ago? I wonder when it would be "pressed into service" and for coffee? Those Victorians! Decoration and more decoration as though they were fearful of space, LOL. IP: Logged |
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venus Posts: 282 |
posted 03-29-2006 06:17 PM
Hi Tea Girl.... Welcome to the forum. Nice something to find in the shed. I really like the charm of some these older items. I kinda like finding quirky things or little known silversmiths. I know some of the regular experts groan when they see a post from me. big smile. IP: Logged |
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rian Posts: 169 |
posted 03-29-2006 06:43 PM
Hello Tea Girl, I'm trying so hard to resist holloware and you are making it really difficult. Could you include a picture or desciption of the mark on your tea pot. My elderly edition of Rainwater's Encyclopedia of Silver Manufacturers shows many different marks for Meridian Britannia Co. Some of the different marks seem to indicate different metals. MBCo was organized in 1852 and produced holloware made of Britannia, an alloy of tin hardened with copper and antimony. If you check under the listing for International Silver, the Rainwater book says that by 1855 the MBCo was offering German silver holloware and flatware for silverplating. (German silver is an alloy of copper, zinc and nickel. During WWI they began calling this alloy nickle silver.) MBCo was a leader in organizing many independent silver companies into International Silver Co. in 1898. IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-29-2006 10:21 PM
The stamps on the bottom: 1) a shield with a scale in the center of the stamp; Meriden above the shield shape; B. Company below the shield shape. All surrounded by a circle. 2) circle which says Meriden Britannia co quadruple. Meriden ct All this is surrounded by a circle. IP: Logged |
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outwest Posts: 390 |
posted 03-29-2006 11:55 PM
Oh, very cool! I wish your pictures were a little bit bigger, though. Between 300-450 pixels wide seems to be the best size to view from my end. It tilts, right? It is a little hard to see from your picture if it is just a stand or if it tilts. If it tilts and has no place to put a little candle to warm the water then it is one of those pots on a stand that you tilt to pour your cold water from on your sideboard. They were an early version of a thermos and often had a lining in them. It was not for coffee. Coffee was not a big thing then. Someone here may know if it was also used for hot water for tea or even chocolate. Chocolate was special then. I know it was used for cold water. I think I'll have to check it out more [ooooh. more research My Rainwater has five separate stamps that match your description. They all vary just slightly. It is unclear when each of these variations were used, but I think that it was used after 1878. Is there a small star between the scale bowls? If so it is nickle silver and then your other stamp indicates it's silver plated over that. In that case you should be able to shine it up some because nickle silver is shiny silver colored. If there is no star then it is white metal (brittania)under the plating. It is also unclear when this star appeared and I think it probably didn't even come into being until later so the star thing may be moot anyway. Have you tried to polish it? Quadruple plated was heavily plated and it is unusual for all that plate to be gone unless it was regularly polished at one time. It just might shine up beautifully for you. Of course, if it has been out in the shed in an Alaskan winter for years and years that would weather it I would think. Meriden B. Co. started making plated holloware in 1855 and then(according to Rainwater) starting in 1867 they used number cyphers under the stamp to indicate what the base metal was. I don't know if the star thing came later or not. I can tell you they stopped using the words "quadruple plate" in 1896 so your wonderful pot is between 1878 (when the circle stamp started) and 1896. I'm going to guess very early 1880's. I am sure when you get your interlibrary loan you will be able to pin down the date by the stamp and find out the base metal by the numbers. [This message has been edited by outwest (edited 03-30-2006).] IP: Logged |
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Scott Martin Forum Master Posts: 11520 |
posted 03-30-2006 06:15 AM
I suspect this is your "Tilting Pitcher". From the 1886-7 Meriden Britannia catalogue. Page 266  IP: Logged |
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Scott Martin Forum Master Posts: 11520 |
posted 03-30-2006 06:32 AM
And this appears to the stand:  IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-30-2006 10:22 AM
Thank you to all who responded! What a great group I've stumbled upon. No, there's no mark at all between the scales. Yes, it's the first pot on the second stand. It came to us all black and it appears much of the silver is gone. How interesting -- maybe for water on the sideboard. I have a Shereton sideboard & could re-instate it to it's proper location in the household. It's a joy to have something from another time, so old, so obviously well used. I have to fantasize about the people who poured from it long ago. How do you feel about re-plating oldies? Wham, history gone? Wham, former elegance restored? Oh, yes, it tilts. The hummingbird stand has a saucer beneath the pot, but no candle or heat-source attachment. IP: Logged |
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outwest Posts: 390 |
posted 03-30-2006 10:54 AM
Tea girl, Scott to the rescue again! The thing is, plated wares (even one as neat as yours) are not worth lots of money. If you want to enjoy it in it's full glory and tilt it to pour water from in the summer I personally see no reason not to replate it back to it's original elegance. Replating DOES diminish value so before you do it you might want to do a quick check of value. This forum is not the place to do that. You could try searching on the internet for similar pots for sale or take it to an antique shop and see what they would pay. Since it isn't worth a lot of money anyway you might get oodles of enjoyment out of it by replating it. This is just my opinion, others may completely disagree! IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-30-2006 11:01 AM
Thanks, Scott. No, there seems to be little interest/value. I was astonished to see an oldie by the same company going for a pittance. That's the market speaking. I value it, though, and not for its monetary value. I value it because it represents a time when my grandmother lived, when people needed things like a dish for at-home or calling cards. A gracious ammenity. IP: Logged |
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rian Posts: 169 |
posted 03-30-2006 05:03 PM
May I add my vote to the replate and use column. After all that time in a cold, dark shed it deserves its fairy tale ending, dressed again in silver, returned to its rightful place on the sideboard. IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 03-30-2006 05:57 PM
Okay, where does one have something replated? IP: Logged |
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outwest Posts: 390 |
posted 03-30-2006 06:15 PM
Why, a silversmith, of course.  Look in your yellow pages or contact a local museum. Don't be too surprised at the cost of replating. Members here might know of someone in your area of Alaska, too. I wonder...why would yours have the tea pot of one design and the stand of another? [This message has been edited by outwest (edited 03-30-2006).] IP: Logged |
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Dale Posts: 2132 |
posted 03-30-2006 11:01 PM
Actually I have sold replated ones for what I thought was good money. These look so elegant and refined when restored, which I feel adds to the value. One use I have seen for tilting pitchers is for serving wine at parties. They hold a good quantity and are easy to pour from. IP: Logged |
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Eclectic Posts: 7 |
posted 04-05-2006 06:44 PM
I am so new to this, I hesitate to reply however, one of my passions happens to be collecting Victorian tippers such as yours. These were indeed for water service, not hot liquids. The little tray you mentioned is a drip plate to keep condensation from soiling the table top. If you look at the underside of the pot, you should find a weep hole for moisture to escape. Do you have a metal, porcelain or enamel liner in your pot? I have replated a few of mine that were in terrible condition. They came out great. IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 04-06-2006 01:20 PM
Thanks, everybody. I've enjoyed this education very much! IP: Logged |
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T-Bird-Art Posts: 143 |
posted 04-26-2006 12:42 PM
Value depends on condition- plate loss , dents , dings, bends. After watching prices online for a number of years. More elaborate Tilting Pitchers ( with 2 Goblets ) & really fancy top-of-the-line pieces go for more depending on condition. Your piece should have a white porcelain insulating liner . The liner will be damaged by HOT liquids. Meriden Btitannia was issued a US patent in 1868 for the insulating porcelain liner-- a big deal in 1800's when a block of ice in a ice box was only thing available to keep things from spoiling. Liner keep iced beverages ( Water , Milk , Fruit Juices cold 6-8 hours. To restore pitcher to it's original glory is expensive $600-$800. They have to completely disassemble it, plate and re-solder it. I understand they have to use the exact solder they used in 1868-1898 to restore it right because of the base metals of nickel silver and white metal. IP: Logged |
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Tea Girl Posts: 9 |
posted 04-26-2006 01:33 PM
Thanks, T Bird. Ours doesn't have the liner. We've decided to put the birds back onto the stand (by a metalsmith) and to put it on the local antique market. I know it won't fetch much, but the person who gets it will be thrilled and that's what counts for me. IP: Logged |
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T-Bird-Art Posts: 143 |
posted 04-30-2006 11:20 AM
Someone removed the liner? Meriden B produced pitchers with metal liners 1854-1868 then developed & patent the white porcelean liner 1868. Production of a few pitchers with metal lners was continued until at least 1886 showing up in their sales catalog of 1886-87. After 1868 most of the pitchers had porcelain liners . HOT liquids will ruin the porcelain liner. IP: Logged |
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