FREE: ***ANTIQUE "GORHAM" SPOON RING***

The listing, ***ANTIQUE "GORHAM" SPOON RING*** has ended.

Recognize when the major design change occured. In 1852, the Gorham sterling silver mark changed to its current form, patterned after the way the English mark their silver It does not carry the same meaning though. Instead of names, Gorham changed its mark to the use of three symbols. They are; a lion, an anchor, and the capital letter "G". The lion was used in various poses through the last half of the 19th Century, and they overlap each other, date-wise. They are; the Lion Rampant (attacking) facing right - 1852-1865, Lion Passant (walking) facing left, just like English sterling - 1855-1860, and Lion Passant facing left (the final version) from 1860 to the present. The letter "G" also underwent various changes. It morphed from a block letter with a serif (the decorative little tails on the tips of letters) from 1852, to the Old English Script from 1863 to the present. The last picture shows whats inside the ring, except the word STERLING follows the G. On this ring in particular the lion faces the right just like the the example in the last picture. That would make this ring between 149-160 years old. It is in pretty good condition.

In England, these symbols mean; sterling (lion), anchor (town of Birmingham), and G (date mark). This was an attempt, by Gorham, to have its wares recognized as quality. The anchor stands for the port town of Providence, but the "G" stands for Gorham...not a date. The hallmarks stuck, with slight changes over the years, but these symbols have been used by Gorham ever since. Size 9.

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