Meriden Britannia USN teapot spout basket

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Meriden Britannia USN teapot spout basket

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Author	Topic: Meriden Britannia USN teapot spout basket
silverSMITH Posts: 23 Registered: Aug 2018	posted 08-26-2018 12:56 AM Permission to come aboard, Sir! While I have to readily admit, I am a snob when it comes to hard cover verses soft in books, and sterling verses plate in tableware, as the proud daughter of a USN sailor (submarine service, 20 years) I just had to “surface, surface, surface” when I saw this little gem through the periscope in a silver shop in Fairhope, AL. This silver plate basket is designed for the prongs to slip down the spout of a teapot, so that the basket dangles from the spout to catch loose tea leaves from entering into the tea cup. I believe the mark is Meriden Britannia Co. After that I am at a loss for the meaning of the additional markings on plate. Having been aboard many WWII ships & subs, I found it incredible that such an accoutrement found its way aboard ship, until I read that in the days before common air travel, diplomats & envoys were dispatched on USN vessels to far-away destinations for talks & treaty signings. Many of these ceremonies took place aboard ship, so the government charged the USN to be equipped & ready to host kings, queens, presidents, & emperors. This piece probably would have been found in the captain’s quarters or mess, & was labeled “mid-century” (1950s), but 1930-40s would seem more like the time period I would have expected a spout basket to have still been in favor. Can anyone help drop anchor on this? Reverse side. Note arrows & olive branch, symbols of strength both in war & peace. [ [This message has been edited by silverSMITH (edited 08-26-2018).] IP: Logged
dragonflywink Posts: 993 Registered: Dec 2002	posted 08-26-2018 03:34 AM International Silver (Meriden Britannia, in this case) used date codes on their hotelware starting, if I recall correctly, in 1914 - the '41' in the square indicates manufacture in 1941, the other mark is factory production code. ~Cheryl 1913 ad for Meriden Britannia hotelware: IP: Logged
ahwt Posts: 2334 Registered: Mar 2003	posted 08-26-2018 09:57 AM Great find. With a 1941 manufacture date your tea basket may well have served in WW II. IP: Logged
Kimo Posts: 1627 Registered: Mar 2003	posted 08-26-2018 08:07 PM Most officers' mess's, both on board ships and in land bases, had nice settings of silver and china. They typically had either generic USN markings such as yours or with ship specific markings, especially on the larger ships. I have seen them both in silver plate such as yours and in sterling. While things have changed somewhat in the past few decades, remember that during WW 2 and before the ship's officers were not only "gentlemen" who were commissioned by acts of Congress, but they were mostly drawn from wealthier families with college degrees that were not as common as they are today. While there are still formal Navy guidelines for "Mess Night" and officers' mess, they were even more formal and rigid going back in history from WW 2. And it was not just for formal entertaining of outside dignitaries and VIPs, it was also for officers from other ships and even just for the officers of the ship itself. After all one would not expect the gejntlemen to drink a toast to the ship out of a dented tin cup or have their coffee poured out of an aluminum pot or eat their dinner with stamped steel tableware, etc. IP: Logged

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