by Linda Pezzimenti

Estate
Findings

SILVER vs.
SILVERPLATE
and… is there really
Bone in BONE CHINA ?

As you set your holiday table this year, here are a few definitions you might find helpful.

Let’s start with “silverware”. We’ve come to use this common term to mean our everyday fork, knife & spoon, whether metal, plastic or grandma’s fine silver.

If it is “silver plated” it’s most likely sterling silver plated over a base metal, usually copper. The process to coat the silver is called electroplating. The value or cost of the silver plate can be based on the thickness of the silver over the lesser metal underneath. Flatware will sometimes be marked with terms like ‘A1, XXX, quadruple” or other words or symbols to identify the amount of silver that has been applied. Silver plate has little value in resale, as the cost to refine it (separate the two) exceeds the value of its silver content.

“Sterling silver” is the term for an object that is 92.5% pure silver. As silver is quite soft, the other 7.5% is an alloy of other metals to increase strength. Sterling manufactured after 1860 in America was required to be marked, and will always have a sterling mark, or backstamp. It may say “Sterling”, use the decimal mark “.925”, or show the fraction “925/1000”. Sterling silver always retains or increases in value, and therefore has a considerable resale value. If made prior to 1860 or outside of the U.S., it becomes more difficult to determine silver content without the help of a professional to do an acid test for silver content.

To avoid the dreaded purple/blue/black discoloration of silver tarnish, it is best for your silver to avoid as much contact with sulfur as possible. Sulfur is found in air pollution, and thus even on our hands, plus in elastics and some glues. Wear cotton gloves whenever possible in handling silver and avoid storing with anything elastic or latex. Cabinets constructed using some glues are also known to cause tarnishing, so keeping silver in a new cupboard should be avoided. The best storage solution is to pack a small sachet of activated charcoal with your silver. Make a sachet by stitching up a square of unbleached cotton around the charcoal, which is sold in pet stores for fish tank filters to keep water clean. Put it in your silver chest or display case. Replace charcoal annually. Better yet, put your silver in an airtight container (Ziploc, Rubber Maid) with the charcoal, in order to avoid introducing additional air contamination.

Continuing to set the table…… we have a very full variety of “china” today. The word “china”, like “silverware”, is a term too commonly used to describe a general category including plates, bowls, platters, cups & saucers, etc.

All being some form of “ceramic”, the difference between pottery, china, and porcelain is not its origin, but its processing or formula, which has come to distinguish quality standards, and price. In the most general term, "ceramic" applies to earthly minerals, mixed with water and other natural materials, then heated for durability.

Since the day of cavemen, humans have used some form of ceramic. The first eating or cooking vessels were shaped from mud & clay and baked in the sun. About the 19th century, the Chinese perfected porcelain by using Kaolin, a white clay, mixing it with stone and firing it at high temperatures. This product became known as “China”.

“Pottery”, like ceramic, is a very general term, used to refer to items made from common clays. It is often artisan hand-crafted using hands, potter’s wheel or molds, then fired at low temperature. “Earthenware”, is porous pottery often associated with some historic significance, and a term used by scientists, when discussing their finds. “Terra cotta” is a type of pottery usually made without a glaze and of a specific color. A common daily place setting, which is glazed and fired for food use, is called “Stoneware” or “Ironstone”. Always be sure to know if your ceramic items are food-safe. Some ceramics are intended for display only, or require a liner before displaying or serving food.

While most ceramics are opaque and do not transmit light, eight hundred years after the Chinese invented ceramics, Europe developed “Porcelain”, highly sought after for its translucence factors. This means that you can actually see through the piece, even if only a faint shadow. Developed in the eighteenth century, factories began producing porcelain in Europe, among them, the famous Meissen factory. In England, new technologies were invented to include the use of a soft paste including ground glass, in place of china stone. Items were decorated and glazed and fired at high temperature. Unfortunately, the product lacked durability and broke easily.

The invention of “Porcelain, hard paste” is white china clay or Kaolin and fusible china stone, which provides translucence. When fired in high heat, ingredients create new surfaces, with wonderful luster and a ringing sound when lightly struck.

“Bone china” is actually made with bone. It is made from a paste somewhere between hard porcelain and soft paste porcelain with a combination of clay, china stone, and calcified bone. Josiah Spode first marketed “Bone China” in 1794. Its fine texture and color quickly replaced “Porcelain” as the quality standard. Typically you will find the words “bone china” marked on the bottom of true bone china dinnerware.

Today, much of Europe’s bone china is made in the Far East and India, in order to reduce costs. Called “blanks”, the plain white bone china is imported, then decorated. Methods include hand painting as well the use of patterns in the form of appliqué or decal. To maintain uniformity, these reproduced decorations (similar to artistic stickers) are stretched across the blanks and fired to seal the colors. Finer pieces have more intricately matching seams, while “seconds”, or lesser quality applications, are often available at very reasonable prices, and even at discount stores.

Should your favorite newer dinner set, or an inherited antique or flea market treasure be lacking pieces, a great resource is a company named Replacements. You can reach them at 1-800-replace (1-800-737-5223) or at www.replacements.com. They are a 400,000 sq. ft. warehouse of all kinds of china and receive 100,000 web visits and 10,000 phone calls daily. They also buy china.

Whatever your budget, style or traditions in table setting, now you have a little information on the history of your pieces. Keep in mind, that the true “value” of your favorites depends mostly on the memories made while using them.

Enjoy your holiday table with family and friends, and whatever your place settings, fill them with good food, and fond memories.

Merry Christmas !

Columnist, Linda Pezzimenti, is former host of the “Estate Findings” radio program. She is proprietor of Josephine’s Victorian Tea Room, 5962 Genesee Street in Lancaster (716-655-0023)….. a great place to enjoy the glory of days past, dine on vintage china, and have a trip to the ‘boudoir room” to borrow a hat, feather fan or boa to “Dress for Tea”. Call for upcoming holiday Tea Dates.