Beautiful antique French vermeil or 18k gold on hallmarked French silver Napoleon III era 13pc tea service or equipage consisting of twelve teaspoons & sugar tongs and all held in a fitted rosewood presentation box with brass inlay! Fabulous! Scrolls and sinuous tendrils adorn the handles, a cluster of scrolls where they meet the bowls. A complete thirteen piece set, all in hallmarked French silver and all as scrumptious as can be! The French Minerve or MInerva mark on all pieces, the small number "2" within that marking designate them as being in .800 silver (80% pure so just under the .925 standard for sterling silver). The slightly lower silver content is quite common in these smaller silver sets, if they were .950 as is most French silver, they would likely bend too easily. Silversmith marks are there but I've not been able to find reference to them. All pieces nestled in the opulent fitted rosewood storage box, brass strip or string inlays an cartouche adorn the lid. A beautiful ensemble, one you'll be proud to show off at tea time :).
Very good condition. Hardly a sign of wear to the vermeil finish, as you can see, they're virtually dripping with gold. The box is in fine shape but does have a bit of tiny chipping around the key hold and one veneer chip on the back. Working lock but missing a key. See pictures for weight and measurements.
