Tied An Engraved Coin Silver Spoon to a Local Family 200 Years Ago

[Erik in NJ]

First of all I wish to thank OWK for his invaluable assistance in dating of this beautifully engraved spoon and also the interpretation of the engraved initials. I found this amazing relic a few years back only about an inch or two deep and have always cherished it as a beautiful piece of local history. With OWKs expertise in silver spoons I am now quite certain that which family the spoon belonged to and that it was in all likelihood part of a set given to them on their wedding day. Following is the write up I did on it--please pardon the censorship, but I am trying to protect the current homeowners from detecting requests and local poaching of sites has been a big problem for me lately.

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This beautifully engraved coin silver (.900) spoon was found on a property near the house at (censored) in (censored) New Jersey. Abraham was married to Mary. The spoon may have been part of a set given to Mr. and Mrs. (censored) as a wedding gift since commonly the groom’s first initial, the bride’s first initial, and then the first initial of the married last name were engraved onto such silverware. Thus the “AMA” in all likelihood represents “Abraham and Mary (censored)."


The spoon has been dated to circa 1785 — 1800 by the shape of its handle and style of its engraving by an expert in the field. With the additional context of Mary’s birthdate this timeframe can be reasonably be narrowed to 1795 — 1800. The style of the decorative wriggle engraving is called “bright-cut.”

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I gave a copy of the write-up to the current owners of the house today and had a very nice talk with them. It's amazing to be able to tie a particular relic not only a family, but to couple that was married over 200 years ago!

 

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[villagenut]

Well done and yes, I would cherish it as well....unless a reunion could be found with deserving descendants stil in the area.

 

[Erik in NJ]

I will look into that next It'll also be interesting to see if any more of the set still exists.

Well done and yes, I would cherish it as well....unless a reunion could be found with deserving descendants stil in the area.

 

[OWK]

There is nothing more satisfying about a relic find, than the ability to tie it directly to an individual.

Very cool.

 

[Erik in NJ]

Very true. Couldn't have done it without your expertise! Great when all of the research comes together.

There is nothing more satisfying about a relic find, than the ability to tie it directly to an individual.

Very cool.

 

[wv hilljack]

Nice! A piece of history.

 

[villagenut]

There is nothing more satisfying about a relic find, than the ability to tie it directly to an individual.

Very cool.

agreed, sometimes a spoon is way more than just a spoon. My kind of find right there.

 

[Ahab8]

That is the best part of this hobby imo. OWK is amazing with the spoons. I have an 18th century silver spoon handle with initials that he explained to me and he dated the spoon. But my nicest complete silver spoon has a T monogram and was found at a point which is named after the family whose last name starts with T. I would love to return it but it seems as though this family returned to Europe at some point after the settlement of this spot. Congrats Eric on a great find and on finding out the rest of the story

 

[Johncoho]

Good luck with trying to return it to the family. I dug up an old WWII military dog tag several weeks ago, and with the help of Facebook, I located the 90 year young widow and returned it to her. She was very excited to have it back.

 

[Erik in NJ]

Thanks Ahab8! I had been searching for a person with the initials AMA, but OWK yesterday made all of the research finally come together. I was looking forward to presenting the write-up to the current homeowners who are an elderly couple. I met the wife this afternoon and we had a very nice chat. Abraham's family was a founding family in the area so that makes it quite special. Will look into finding a direct descendent next.

I think the spoon with research warrants an article in the local paper but I do not want people knocking on the elderly couple's door asking to detect their property.

That is the best part of this hobby imo. OWK is amazing with the spoons. I have an 18th century silver spoon handle with initials that he explained to me and he dated the spoon. But my nicest complete silver spoon has a T monogram and was found at a point which is named after the family whose last name starts with T. I would love to return it but it seems as though this family returned to Europe at some point after the settlement of this spot. Congrats Eric on a great find and on finding out the rest of the story

 

[wev]

First of all I wish to thank OWK for his invaluable assistance in dating of this beautifully engraved spoon and also the interpretation of the engraved initials. I found this amazing relic a few years back only about an inch or two deep and have always cherished it as a beautiful piece of local history. With OWKs expertise in silver spoons I am now quite certain that which family the spoon belonged to and that it was in all likelihood part of a set given to them on their wedding day. Following is the write up I did on it--please pardon the censorship, but local poaching of sites has been a big problem for me lately.

-----

This beautifully engraved coin silver (.900) spoon was found on a property near the house at (censored) in (censored) New Jersey known as the Abraham (censored) House. Abraham (1777 - (censored)) built the original dwelling circa 1802. He was married to Mary (censored) (1780 — (censored)). The spoon may have been part of a set given to Mr. and Mrs. (censored) as a wedding gift since commonly the groom’s first initial, the bride’s first initial, and then the first initial of the married last name were engraved onto such silverware. Thus the “AMA” in all likelihood represents “Abraham and Mary (censored)."


The spoon has been dated to circa 1785 — 1800 by the shape of its handle and style of its engraving by an expert in the field. With the additional context of Mary’s birthdate this timeframe can be reasonably be narrowed to 1795 — 1800. The style of the decorative wriggle engraving is called “bright-cut.”

-----

I gave a copy of the write-up to the current owners of the house today and had a very nice talk with them. It's amazing to be able to tie a particular relic not only a family, but to couple that was married over 200 years ago!

Are all the (censored)." self imposed? At the request of the descendents? Mandated by this site's regulations? If not, then your post seems rather pointless to those who have an interest in the history of American silver, but are outside the group of "insiders" privy to this piece's details.

 

[Erik in NJ]

Self imposed to protect the elderly couple living in the house from locals that wish to detect the property (there is a large percentage of lurkers on the forum that never post). Drop me a PM and I will share the details with you. I will need OWKs and your help in deciphering the maker's mark. It would be interesting to find out where it was made, by whom, and whether any other pieces of a potential set still exist.

 

[Ahab8]

Thanks Ahab8! I had been searching for a person with the initials AMA, but OWK yesterday made all of the research finally come together. I was looking forward to presenting the write-up to the current homeowners who are an elderly couple. I met the wife this afternoon and we had a very nice chat. Abraham's family was a founding family in the area so that makes it quite special. Will look into finding a direct descendent next.

I think the spoon with research warrants an article in the local paper but I do not want people knocking on the elderly couple's door asking to detect their property.

Funny....my first name is Abraham. Anyway, yes it's a very tough thing. My ultimate responsibility is to protect the property owners at all costs. I never ever mention a word about the sites I hunt for fear of letting one thing slip that may compromise a very special property and the folks who own it. I always make the choice that I believe will best protect the people and as cool as the story would be there's just too many people in society who would take a great story and use it for personal gain. Good luck whatever you decide

 

[WildWildBill]

Things like that are always better when there is provenance.....now it's more valuable monetarily and historically.

 

[treblehunter]

Beautiful spoon, I found one last year that had a date 1910 on it and name, "Dorothy", one of my all time favorite finds. The craftsmanship is so elegant on yours!

 

[Erik in NJ]

I hear ya Abraham and I agree with you! The spoon was not found on the current property associated with the house, but the property was surely much bigger 200 years ago and it was unearthed near by. So it's a real dilemma for me. A great piece of local history that the press would love to do a story on, but I do not want to burden the elderly couple who owns the house with detecting requests. I will mull it over, but protecting the property owners is paramount in my mind. Thanks for your post!

Funny....my first name is Abraham. Anyway, yes it's a very tough thing. My ultimate responsibility is to protect the property owners at all costs. I never ever mention a word about the sites I hunt for fear of letting one thing slip that may compromise a very special property and the folks who own it. I always make the choice that I believe will best protect the people and as cool as the story would be there's just too many people in society who would take a great story and use it for personal gain. Good luck whatever you decide

 

[Erik in NJ]

Thanks. I almost didn't dig because it was only an inch or two deep oddly enough and very near the driveway...I thought it was a random piece of aluminum junk. Shocked when I saw what it was. The bowl is rolled lenth-wise unfortunately, but I'm sure it can be fixed now that I have an ID on it finally. Or maybe it's got more character the way it is. Yes, the hand engraving they did then was really a beautiful art...and since this was well before large silver discoveries in the US like the Comstock Lode, it is quite a slender, thin, and elegant piece. Sad to think what coins were melted down to make it back in the day.

Beautiful spoon, I found one last year that had a date 1910 on it and name, "Dorothy", one of my all time favorite finds. The craftsmanship is so elegant on yours!

 

[basque-man]

That's a great story and research!!!! Would be a center piece in our collection for sure!!!

 

[Erik in NJ]

Thank you for the kind words--the recent research thanks to OWK and wev made this find really come alive better than I could have imagined.

That's a great story and research!!!! Would be a center piece in our collection for sure!!!

 

[cjon455]

always way cooler to be able to tie a find to a particular family and/or person, very neat.
congrats on a great find!