Elizabethan Baluster Silver Seal Top Spoon, 1600

This late Elizabethan silver seal top has a stunning baluster finial that retains much of its original gilding.

The spoon was made by the top specialist spoonmaker Patrick Brue and bears a clear example of his mullet over an annulet mark. The quality is top drawer with a good, hefty feel in the hand. The bowl is lightly gilt to the interior with remnants also present on the reverse - there is also an intriguing set of three engraved flower-heads and a star which were probably added at the same time as the gilding at a later date. For its four hundred year age, the spoon is in great condition, however the bowl is rather scratched and has lost a little shape at the leading edge. The baluster seal terminal however is superb and bears original dot-pricked initials "MC" to the flat plate.

The Elizabethan hallmarks are superb with all four, including the date letter for 1600, being cleanly struck and in good, crisp condition.

After being apprenticed to Nicholas Bartholomew in 1562, Patrick Brue went on to take over his master's workshop and become the leading spoonmaker of the late 16th century. Importantly, he had several later spoonmakers apprenticed to him that included William Cawdell, John Lovejoy, John Round and Daniel Cary. Through John Round, a long line of spoonmakers can be traced well in to the 18th century.