PERTH / FRASERBURGH - A SCOTTISH PROVINCIAL TABLESPOON
JOHN AND FRANCIS BROWN
Auction: Day 2: Thursday 21 August - Lots 297 - end
Description
marked IB, armorial shield, FB, of Hanoverian pattern, with deep bowl, the reverse of the terminal engraved WF/ SG, with double drop heel and beaded and engraved fleur de lys 'rat tail'
Dimensions
20.5cm long, 61g
Footnote
The working careers of John Brown and his son Francis are somewhat confused. Although recorded in Perth as early as 1724 they appear to have worked in Edinburgh and possibly Elgin as well. No marks have been confidently ascribed to either of these periods and all their known work is tied to Perth.
The marks they used fall into three groups, all with the very recognisable IB and FB maker's marks, with PERTH in full, a large Fleur de Lys and, as seen on this spoon, what appears to be an armorial bearing.
The use of the armorial bearing has not been explained and the use of the punch is certainly their rarest. Its large size means that when encountered, it is often poorly struck, leaving details hard to ascertain. This example is amongst the best noted.
The double drop and engraved 'rat tail' is also a feature unique to these makers in Scottish silver and shows much closer comparison to continental European work than to British examples.
For an example from the same set as the current lot see Lyon & Turnbull, Scottish Silver and Applied Arts, 16th August 2017, lot 322. For further discussion and recent research see The Finial, March/April 2020 Vol. 30/04, advocating a Fraserburgh origin.