Set of Salt Spoons
INSCRIPTION: Engraved on face of handle with the script intial “S” for Thomas Littleton Savage (1760-1813) of Northampton Co., Virginia.
MARK: Struck on reverse of handles with “TH” maker’s mark (Thomas Holland), sterling standard mark (full-body lion facing left), date letter for 1792 (lowercase roman “r” in an oval shield), and English duty mark (profile of King George III). All are intaglio marks in oval or rectangular reserves.
MAKER: Silversmith Thomas Holland entered his mark with the London Assay Office in 1798. His shop was on Fleet Street in the Temple Bar District of London.
FORM: By the end of the eighteenth century, spoons were crafted for such specific purposes as serving salt and sugar (salt spoons), food items (serving spoons), punch and soup (ladles), and for stirring tea or coffee and/or eating custard or ice cream (teaspoons).