Lovely antique French hallmarked German gold on .812 (nearly sterling) silver "vermeil" 12pc 8" fruit or dessert knife set, ornate Louis XV style pattern with stylized seashells and palmette accents, hallmarked blades and all in fine condition! A "Sevigne" like stylized seashell represented at the base of the handles and palmette shaped accenting near the centers. As elegant as they come and perfect for entremet or dessert pieces in your fine flatware table setting. Add a bit of gold to your table just for added flair. There are hallmarks on the blades and handles including "13" designating them as being in at least .812 or 80% pure silver under the gold plating. There are two silversmith marks, one is "E.S&Co" that I've not found reference to but the other is for Henninger & Company of Berlin, circa 1842 to early 1900s. The blades also bear the French import 'weevil' mark and associated insect date mark so they must have been brought into France at some point, which is where we found them. A beautiful set, don't miss it.
Very good condition. There is some tarnish visible in the pictures, sorry, we should have had our polisher to over them before photographing. It will surely come out with some Wright's polish though and we'd be happy to do so before sending out. There is also some wear to the vermeil on the handles and blades, as seen in the pictures. Possible a tiny dimple or two to the handles but no denting, damage or repairs to note. The box is likely not original and has a stamp on the inside that reads "A. Sperlaeken, 55 Rue de la Monnaie, Lille". See pictures for all measurements and weights.
