posted 09-11-2013 03:51 PM            

My name is Brooke. My family and I live in rural SE Alabama. I moved here about 5 years ago with my two eldest daughters after meeting and marrying a "hometown" boy on the internet. Prior to that, I was a military spouse, and lived all over the US and in Germany.

My grandparents were also in the military, and acquired quite a collection of things from all over the world, mostly Japan. As an only grandchild, many of those items, as well as family heirlooms, came into my possession. And there begins my interest in silver. I have treasured my grandmother's sterling silverware.

My husband and I have recently come across a sterling tea service that was hidden away in a box in our barn. We are by no means collectors, but we are very curious about the origins of the service.

There is some family lore that goes along with it, and I would love to know if it is accurate or just a good story.

My husband and I have scoured the internet hoping to identify the mark or discover the origins of a family heirloom tea service recently discovered in our barn.

There is a "story" behind this gift given to my grandparents immediately after WWII.

The closest comparison we can find are items stamped "Yokohama Arthur and Bond" or variations thereof.

The service we have is simply stamped "STERLING."

I have attached a few photos. I hope it worked.

Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Oh btw, we are HUGE football fans!

Thanks for having me,

Brooke

posted 09-12-2013 04:12 PM            

I think it is very nice looking and my first thought is it was made somewhere in Asia because of the bamboo design, but that is hard to say for sure since bamboo designs have been used all over the world. Without any hallmarks of any kind and just the word STERLING stamped into the bottom it may be difficult or not possible to identify it for sure. Identified similar designs do not normally help much since copying and making similar designs by many makers is pretty common, especially when the maker is not one of the bigger names who normally put their markings on their products.