Title: Crystal Lead Glass Bottle With Sterling Silver Hammered Lid
Shipping: $29.00
Artist: N/A
Period: 19th Century
History: N/A
Origin: Northern Europe > England
Condition: N/A
Item Date: N/A
Item ID: 183
An absolutely beautiful example of a 19th-century crystal bottle antique. Crystal lead glass bottle with sterling silver hammered lid. The silver top Has been hammered and if you look closely you can see the silver marks around the edge of the lid. Silversmiths saw or cut specific shapes from sterling and fine silver sheet metal and bar stock, and then use hammers to form the metal over anvils and stakes. Silver is hammered cold (at room temperature). As the metal is hammered, bent, and worked, it 'work-hardens'. Annealing is the heat-treatment used to make the metal soft again. If metal is work-hardened, and not annealed occasionally, the metal will crack and weaken the work. Silversmiths can use casting techniques to create knobs, handles and feet for the hollowware they are making. After forming and casting, the various pieces may be assembled by soldering and riveting. During most of their history, silversmiths used charcoal or coke fired forges, and lung-powered blow-pipes for soldering and annealing. Modern silversmiths commonly use gas burning torches as heat sources. A newer method is laser beam welding. Silversmiths may also work with copper and brass, especially when making practice pieces, due to those materials having similar working properties and being more affordable than silver.
In the ancient Near East the value of silver to gold being less, allowed a silversmith to produce objects and store these as stock. Ogden states that according to an edict written by Diocletian in 301 A.D., a silversmith was able to charge 75, 100, 150, 200, 250, or 300 denarii for material produce (per Roman pound). At that time, guilds of silversmiths formed to arbitrate disputes, protect its members' welfare and educate the public of the trade.
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silversmith
Silversmiths in medieval Europe and England formed guilds and transmitted their tools and techniques to new generations via the apprentice tradition. Silver working guilds often maintained consistency and upheld standards at the expense of innovation. Beginning in the 17th century, artisans emigrated to America and experienced fewer restrictions. As a result, silver working was one of the trades that helped to inaugurate the Technological and industrial history of the United States Silver–working shift to industrialization in America.
