Elegant & RARE complete 18pc set of antique French Louis XVIII to Louis-Philippe era .800 (or nearly sterling) solid silver bladed entremet or luncheon sized 7 3/4" knives with solid carved mother of pearl handles, fitted storage and/or presentation box and all in superb condition! Nearly 200 years old at this point though you would really never guess it from their appearance! All as gorgeous as can be and I've always loved the pearl handled pieces, such elegance, cool to the touch and the weight in hand is always nice, too ;). All blades bear 1819-1838 French Socrates hallmarks for .800 silver (80% pure so just under the .925 standard for "sterling" silver). The silversmith marks are there but I've not been able to locate them in my reference books, it gets harder the older the marks are unfortunately. In any event, the face of each blade is also marked "Charriere" which must be either the maker or retailer. An exquisite set, guaranteed to impress!
Excellent condition. The pieces are all pristine, no chips or cracks in the pearl handles and no bends or damage to the silver blades. The box is also in great shape but may not be original. The front lip of the box is marked "Touron Fabricant 24 . Rue De La Paix . 24 Paris". See pictures for weights and all measurements.
