Gorgeous antique French Napoleon III era sterling silver 8" dessert, luncheon or entremet sized knife set with elegant solid mother of pearl handles, engraved "MD" monograms and beautifully ornate stylized Neo-Gothic style silver caps & collars! As elegant as can be, very French with the pearl & silver, the blades are all hallmarked and date from 1838 (Minerva hallmark) to the late 1800s. The caps & collars on the handles bear no hallmarks but they're also silver of course. The blades all bear the French Minerve or Minerva hallmarks, the tiny number "1" within those marks means they're in .950 silver (95% pure and higher than the .925 standard for "sterling" silver). There are two silversmith marks among the blades, those of B. Fuchs and also Pierre Queille, both date to the mid-late 1800s. The set is simply stunning. Fabulous!
Very good to excellent condition. There is some visible tarnish in the recessed decoration of the silver handle caps & collars. Some slight fading to the enamel fill in the engraved monograms, see pictures. No damage to note, no chips, cracks or repairs to the pearl handles. Just wonderful! See pictures for weight and measurements.
