Sterling silver numbered monogramed brush and mirror set passed down from many generations in my family, I would like to know approximately what it is worth

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Posted by cassieb
12 years ago
AI Appraisal
💬 6 Comments 🗣️ Discuss with Community
Description I have a Sterling silver numbered brush and mirror set that was passed down to me by my mother, it has been in our family for a long time i believe since the 1700's or 1800's the set includes a silver hand mirror (monogrammed) ,a silver and horse hair brush (monogrammed) , 2 crystal jars with silver lids one monogrammed one is not, a silver shoe horn (monogrammed), a silver nail file (monogrammed) and a silver nail tool (monogrammed) all the pieces are numbered . I do not know much about the history of these items or the value and would very much like to know.
Category Silver and Silver Overlay
Medium Sterling Silver numbered
Distinguishing marks Monogrammed with what looks like VYB , mirror numbers are c973, brush numbers are c966, nail file B2007, nail tool b2006, monogrammed crystal jar d1073, non monogrammed crystal jar is not numbered and i dont think is part of the original set it says sterling and the shoe horn the numbers are worn down and i cant tell.
Condition Excellent
Size and dimensions of this item many items
Date Period 1700's-1800's ?
History I do not know much of the history of these items i believe my mother told me they belonged to my great, great, great , great, great Grandmother who's last name was Brown I think, who was somehow realated to John Alden who came on the mayflower to America. I am not sure how accurate this information is though my grandmothers maiden name was Young and
thats all I know for sure.
Price Paid (If known) family heirloom
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Submitted by Lovejoy

Based on your iamges this set actually dates from the turn of the 19th Century and is in the Art Nouveau style, a style that reached its peak of popularity Circa 1900.  If there are no marking to idicate the siliver content the set is most likely silver plated rather than Sterling.

Sets made of Sterling silver , depwend in where they are made will be marked "Sterling",  with a number such as "925" or "800" ( For  92.5% silver or 80% silver), or will have a series of punched stamps  called "Hallmarks" that indicate things such as the silver content, the maker, country/city of origin and the date. Each country has it's own hallmarking system, the number of stamps and types used will vary by the country thery were made in.

Please check you set again to see if you can find any of these types of markings, as there is a big difference in value between the Sterling sets and the silver plated types.

Yes they all have little stamp looking pictures and say sterling and then have numbers behind them i cannot make out what the little pictures are it looks like two little circles with some type of crest in between that looks almost like it has an cross,anchor or arrow in it and says sterling underneath.

These marks indiate this set is American and was made by Gorham. Generally comparable sets go at auction for about $200.00. Gorham was one of the best known silver companies in North America from the 1850's through the 1940's. Some pieces will have a date mark, I'll take another look at your marks to see if I can find it.

Wow ok thank u very much because i have really been wondering about this set for a long time and never knew how to get information about it so anything you can find out about these items would be great i really love them they remind me of royalty, I keep looking for dates on them but cant find one....what type of person would usually have one of these sets back then? Was it a common thing to have and do you see alot of them nowadays? Sorry if im asking to many questions i am really into history i would really like to know who owned the set originally so if you can give me any suggestions on how to research that and find out more about the set or year it was made or anything that would be sooooo cool!! Again thank you for your help

Sets like these were made in large numbers, most upper middle class women during the turn of the 19th century would have had a set like this. The chance of finding out who owned it without any family history are very slim. The style it's in was only made for a short period, roughly 1890-1910, the marking on this one was used about 1900 onward.
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