Spoon, Exeter, 1780-1781
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1780-1781
Spoon in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number 195-1903), made in Exeter, dated 1780-1781, attributed to Eustace, Thomas. The museum's brief description reads: Silver, English, Exeter, 1780-81, mark of Thomas Eustace. Museum description: Silver, Old English pattern with a drop and the initials 'F H' engraved later on the finial. The museum records it as Silver, forged and engraved, measuring Length 21 cm; Weight 56 g. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
The records of the London goldsmiths' Garrard for 1760 include customer orders for spoons and forks which are described as 'turn'd back'. This is almost certainly a reference to pieces like this, in which the finial turns back or down so that they can be laid on the table with the bowl or tines uppermost (as we would set them on the table today). Turned back finials are unlike the French patterns which English goldsmiths imitated during the second half of the eighteenth century, and consequently this distinctive style has come to be known as 'Old English'. The Exeter assay office, where Thomas Eustace sent this spoon to be tested for silver content, opened in 1700. Eustace, who specialised in spoons, buckles, buttons and other small wares, was active during a period of great prosperity for the Exeter assay office. Eustace was declared bankrupt in 1789; the Exeter assay office closed in January 1883 when local goldsmiths ceased to submit items there for assay, preferring the London office instead.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- silver
- Dimensions
- Length 21 cm; Weight 56 g
Technical characteristics
- Technique
- Silver, forged and engraved
- Maker recorded
- Eustace, Thomas
- Place recorded
- Exeter
Design
- Inscriptions recorded
- Punched on the back of the stem, L to R from bowl: maker's mark of Thomas Eustace; lion passant; town mark of Exeter; partly worn date-letter 'H' (rather than 'F') for assay year 1780-81; Engraved on the finial, the initials 'F H' intertwined, 19th century.
Identification
- Museum object name
- Spoon
- Museum object number
- 195-1903
- Museum system number
- O296936
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and date against a specialist reference.