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Glass Identification - Post here for all ID requests => Glass => Unresolved Glass Queries => Topic started by: Tigerchips on December 05, 2005, 12:44:16 AM

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 05, 2005, 12:44:16 AM

The metal glass holders are stamped "Made In England". The glasses are hand blown and thin at the rim and thicker at the base. I don't know what kind of metal it is but I would guess that it's silver plated.
(http://glassgallery.yobunny.org.uk/albums/userpics/10011/normal_Picture%20072.jpg)
(http://glassgallery.yobunny.org.uk/albums/userpics/10011/normal_Picture%20058.jpg)
(http://glassgallery.yobunny.org.uk/albums/userpics/10011/normal_Picture%20078.jpg)
Any comments welcome, thanks.  :)

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 07, 2005, 11:35:53 AM

I must admit it does look kind of cheap. Very thin metal. Items stamped with "Made In England" seem to be fairly common. I had a suger caster with the same mark.

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Pinkspoons on December 07, 2005, 11:40:37 AM

If it's silver-plated it will be hallmarked 'EPNS', 'EPBM' or 'EPWM' somewhere.  :)

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Leni on December 07, 2005, 11:47:05 AM

Not pewter, is it?  :shock:  :?

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Pinkspoons on December 07, 2005, 11:49:21 AM

I thought it looked pewtery too...   :)

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 07, 2005, 07:44:49 PM

I don't think it's pewter, It's just dirty and goes shiny when cleaned.

I don't know if I should clean it or not because I might devalue it. That's why it's still dirty and it's not because I'm too lazy to clean it.  :wink:

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Pinkspoons on December 07, 2005, 07:50:10 PM

You can have silver-plated pewter, though - it's called EPBM (Electro-Plated Britannia Metal).

I'm not sure if there are laws which state that all silver-plate must be hallmarked, like with regular silver...?

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Leni on December 07, 2005, 08:11:13 PM

Quote from: "Tigerchips"

I don't think it's pewter, It's just dirty and goes shiny when cleaned.

But pewter goes shiny when it's cleaned!  :shock:

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 07, 2005, 09:29:42 PM

Yes, you're right Leni, silly me.  :oops:

Pewter doesn't tarnish. I can see a purple tarnish inside the holders.

It might be EPBM but does it rust?

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Pinkspoons on December 07, 2005, 09:48:35 PM

I don't think so, but I don't know! T'is a quandry.  :?

It's probably an alloy, or chromed/plated steel or some-such.

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 07, 2005, 10:17:20 PM

It also sticks to a magnet though I haven't got any pewter to see if a magnet sticks to that.  :)

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Max on December 07, 2005, 10:45:19 PM

When I first saw this, I thought it was EPNS that had been loved (read 'cleaned') too much, so you were looking mainly at the base metal.

Would the base metal become shiny when polished?   :?  :?:

Edit:  Suddenly thought this would have suited chrome plated more than EPNS??

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Pinkspoons on December 07, 2005, 11:39:30 PM

Hurray for Google...

Pewter doesn't rust, so it's pretty safe to say that it's not that. Nor does nickel in EPNS.

Chromed or (non-silver) plated steel doesn't seem to have red rust - I have a late Victorian silver-handled stationary set that I had a quick rummage for, and the steel instrument parts of the set have a black oxide instead, and with only a slight texture. Nor does the steel shine when polished (although the remaining plating does).

So it would seem that the base metal is another iron-based alloy (possibly chromium).

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 08, 2005, 08:27:30 AM

I've tried to clean it up but to no effect. it's definetly not silver plated because I used bleach and that would have turned it black.

I have one of them Kosy Kraft style teapots and the metal is just like that. The metal on the teapot is marked: Celtic, "Quality" plate.

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Anne on December 09, 2005, 01:08:35 AM

Tigerchips, try Autosol - I used it to clean all my metalware (not just chrome) - test it on a bit out of sight first of course!  Autosol is available from most supermarkets and car accessories' shops. :)

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 09, 2005, 06:01:46 PM

Great I'll try that, thanks.  :D

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Frank on December 10, 2005, 01:46:18 AM

Brittania metal is a tin alloy but it is not pewter.

Have you tried a magnet, which will eliminate ferric metals?

Aluminium was also very popular from late 19th to 1920's following the casting of Eros. It can suffer some weird tarnishing because a lot was not very pure.

Title: English silver plated tray with glasses
Post by: Tigerchips on December 10, 2005, 09:17:46 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EPBM

A magnet sticks to it like super glue.