Old Thimble

[ALAMOTX]

I am wondering how old this thimble might be?

Just found it this weekend!

Thanks

 

[BioProfessor]

If the dimples are machine-made - uniform - then is no older than about 1870-1880 when machine made thimbles were common.

Daryl

 

[Tomcat359]

I have an old timble that has that patina. It looks like it may be silver. Any marking on the inside ? Possibly .925 . G`luck Rick

 

[ALAMOTX]

No markings inside the thimble

 

[BioProfessor]

Silver thimbles are usually pretty black when they come out of the ground. Yours looks like a brass thimble in the style popular in the late 1800's.

We find LOTS of thimbles in the UK. Maybe a hundred from one field over a couple of years. Seems they didn't use them for sewing.

Daryl

 

[fistfulladirt]

Thimbles are cool! The one in my avatar came from the ground shiny, a clay marble stuck in the base. Stamped sterling. Look inside yours towards the top, sometimes hallmarked there. ffd

 

[BioProfessor]

Yep, silver comes out either black or silver. Weird. In this case, since the thimble has a patina, I would expect it to be black and not the color it is if it were silver. Most time, silver thimbles have some sort of decoration. If you had the money to buy a silver thimble, you could afford a few more dollars for decoration. A way to charge more and also show people you could afford a fancy silver thimble.

Silver is the one thing that the experts on Antiques Road Show say it is OK to clean. I guess since the "patina" on silver - if it has one - is black and not that attractive green color.

Daryl