Sterling Silver Pepperette | Cobalt Blue Glass Liner | Birmingham | 1922

Sterling Silver Pepperette | Cobalt Blue Glass Liner | Birmingham | 1922

Even the smallest things on the dinner table were once given their own silverwork.

Small silver condiment vessels were a familiar feature of British tableware in the late Victorian and early 20th centuries. Birmingham was an important centre of silver manufacture and assay, producing practical table pieces alongside more elaborate domestic silver. This pepperette bears Birmingham hallmarks for 1922–23, during the reign of George V.

The pepperette is a slim cylinder on a stepped, spreading foot, with reeded bands at the neck. Two bands of vertical slotted piercing circle the body, and the cobalt blue glass liner inside shows through them as a deep blue. The removable domed cap is pierced with petal-shaped and round holes. The body is hallmarked with the Birmingham anchor, the lion passant and the date letter x. The maker’s mark beside them is rubbed and can’t be read.

Good antique condition, with visible tarnish, dark spotting and discolouration to the silver, particularly around the pierced bands and the foot. It keeps an aged finish rather than a heavily polished one. The cobalt blue glass liner is intact and fixed in place.

Key Details

• Maker: unidentified (maker’s mark rubbed)
• Hallmarks: anchor, lion passant and date letter x (Birmingham, 1922–23)
• Period: George V, 1920s
• Material: sterling silver, with cobalt blue glass liner
• Form: cylindrical pepperette with pierced bands and domed pierced cap
• Dimensions: height 7 cm; diameter 3.5 cm
• Weight: 51 g (including liner)
• Condition: good; tarnish and dark spotting to the silver; liner intact
• Buyer profile: collectors of English hallmarked silver, and anyone building a cruet or setting a traditional table

Collector Appeal

The appeal of this pepperette lies in the contrast between its pierced silver body and the cobalt blue glass beneath. The two bands of narrow openings create a restrained geometric pattern, while the domed cap and spreading foot keep the familiar proportions of early 20th-century table silver. Its Birmingham hallmarks give it a secure assay date, and the fitted liner completes its distinctive appearance.

A little silver, a glimpse of blue, and a place kept at the table.