Cased Set of Six Mappin & Webb Sterling Silver Coffee Spoons – London, 1929

Cased Set of Six Mappin & Webb Sterling Silver Coffee Spoons – London, 1929

After-dinner coffee called for small spoons, and a set of six in a fitted case was one of the classic gifts of the inter-war years.

Mappin & Webb, with roots in Sheffield going back to 1775, had become one of Britain’s best-known silversmiths and retailers by the 1920s, holding Royal Warrants and trading from Oxford Street in London. Small cased sets like this one were made as gifts and finished to the same standard as their larger silver. These spoons were hallmarked in London in 1929–30, during the reign of George V.

Each spoon has a plain oval bowl and a slender stem with shaped, scalloped edges that widen to a decorative terminal. The six spoons rest in their original fitted case, covered in blue leather-cloth and closed with a brass push button. The lid is lined in cream satin, printed with a crown and “By Appointment, Mappin & Webb Ltd, Oxford Street, London W.”, and the base is fitted with dark blue velvet. Each spoon is hallmarked on the back of the bowl with the Mappin & Webb maker’s mark.

Very good condition, with minimal wear consistent with careful use.

Key Details

• Maker: Mappin & Webb Ltd
• Hallmarks: maker’s mark M^N W^B, leopard’s head, date letter o (London, 1929–30)
• Period: George V, 1920s
• Material: sterling silver; original fitted presentation case
• Quantity: six coffee spoons
• Weight: 41 g (silver, total for six); 221 g including the case
• Condition: very good; minimal wear
• Buyer profile: collectors of English hallmarked silver and cased sets; anyone looking for a gift with a well-known maker’s name

Collector Appeal

A complete set of six, still together in its Mappin & Webb fitted case with the Royal Warrant printed in the lid, is the form in which these spoons were first sold.

Six small spoons, still waiting for the coffee to be poured.