# Old silver teapot identification help? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 8, 2012, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153 "2012-04-08T04:46:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2012, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153/1 "2012-04-08T04:46:34Z")
Can [anyone](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_1.jpg) [tell](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_2.jpg) [me](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_3.jpg) [anything](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_5.jpg) [about](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_4.jpg) [this?](http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd69/brujaja/Apr072012-VID00417_6.jpg) It is apparently solid silver with a nice wooden handle; it has a hallmark on the bottom that is very tiny, but looks like a tall scales, or possibly just a cross. The design overall is so unusual that I can’t even place it in a particular era. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![cynyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@cynyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cynyc)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153/2 "2012-04-08T05:42:19Z")
The mark is the most important part at this point. Try to get a close-up or do a rubbing. Why do you think it is sterling? ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153/3 "2012-04-08T06:17:48Z")
I could be wrong, but that looks more like a tea-kettle than a teapot–the kettle being what you boil the water in. I didn’t think they made those out of silver, since that’s basically a cooking implement, but like I say I could be wrong. Whichever it is, this site: [Online Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmarks, and Makers Marks](http://www.925-1000.com/) may be of some use to you. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2012, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153/4 "2012-04-08T07:42:57Z")
Well, I think it’s silver because… I guess because I thought one only finds hallmarks on non-plated objects. looking at that hallmark identification site, it appears that I am mistaken about that. My apologies. Yes, **Spectre of Pithecanthropus,** it is in fact a teakettle. Thinking about it, I realize there is no reason to put a wooden handle on a teaPOT. Also, the bottom of the pot is recessed a good half-inch from the bottom rim, which for some reason suggests to me that it’s meant to be over a heat source. I guess the thick rim protects the pot’s bottom surface from heat damage. Thanks so much for the link to the hallmark site, it was fascinating. However, I perused it very carefully, and could find nothing similar. I broke the cardinal rule of antiques, and polished around the mark just a little with my thumb. The mark is a cross, inside of an elongated (vertically), slightly rounded hexagon; what I thought may be the trays of a scales are not – the cross is flanked by two capital L’s, one on each side. I will have to wait until daylight to examine the metal; I cannot tell if a slight yellowish cast is part of the oxidation, or the telltale sign of silver-over-brass. No guesses on the unusual style? Could it be Asian? Deco? ---
**Author:** ![cynyc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@cynyc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cynyc)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-silver-teapot-identification-help/618153/5 "2012-04-08T23:43:30Z")
Silverplate carries marks. Look at any old fork. Sterling doesn’t make sense as a cooking implement but to test for sterling you can take it to a local jeweler. Good luck! My quick cheap read is that it’s Danish Celtic Deco. 🙂