Antiques: Silverplate is underappreciated ... and underpriced

Silverplate is underrated. There, I said it. In today's era of precious metal covetousness, it's a sad thing that beautiful examples of silverplate flatware and decorative items wind up at thrift stores while anything made of sterling silver is highly sought.

I know, I know: pure silver is selling around $22.50/ounce as I write this, making your standard sterling teaspoon with its 92.5% silver content worth about $20 in metal alone. All the same, many larger sterling pieces are selling for way over melt value while equally lovely silverplate objects languish unsold even at peanut prices. Thus, consider the following an admonition to dust off granny's tea set and return it to a place of pride, no matter its content.

First, some background. As it happens, silverplate has its own storied history, dating back to 1742 when a careless British flatware maker dumped a mess of molten silver onto a copper knife handle. The silver adhered to the copper, and silverplate was born. Even then, silver was significantly more valuable than copper, so it quickly became apparent that silverplating copper or another base metal might be a way to extend the beauty of silver to a less affluent market.

For the first 100 or so years after its invention, silverplate was often applied only to the top or visible portion of tableware, leaving the metal below in its natural form. It wasn't until about 1840 when electroplating was invented that plating of the entire object became the norm.

So what's the difference between early plating — known as Old Sheffield plating — and later electroplating? Old Sheffield plating utilized pure silver in a process that fused that metal to an underlying base. The result of the former was a whiter finish and one less likely to rub off over the years from repeated use and polishing. Electroplating works through a different means to apply a very thin coating of sterling silver to a metal base. Such items are often marked "EPNS" (Electro-Plated Nickel Silver) or "EPBS" (Electro-Plated Britannia Silver) on the bottom in lieu of a sterling hallmark. While both processes do the job, neither leaves behind enough silver to be meaningful.

But that is not to say that silverplate has no value. Quite the contrary. Antique or ornate silverplate, especially from 19th century American makers such as Rogers Brothers and Meriden Britannia, remains highly collectible. Indeed, Victorian-era silverplate makers on both sides of the Atlantic incorporated traditional Italian and Egyptian designs to magnificent effect. Many such serving pieces included a glass bowl or vessel enclosed by an ornamented silverplate frame.

Calling card receivers, nut bowls, and ice-water pitchers that pivoted were just a few of the designs that caught on with upwardly mobile consumers. With sterling silver out of reach for many, these were the items that decorated so many American homes.

Today, silverplate prices from such storied makers as Christofle, ONEIDA, Rogers, Sheffield, and Tiffany run the gamut in price and quality, but it's often the case that beautiful pieces can be had for a fraction of their sterling equivalents. Why should a sterling serving bowl containing $50 worth of silver sell for $200 while its silverplated doppelganger goes for $15.99?

The point is that if you're looking to dress up your dinner table, don't walk past the silverplate with your nose in the air. There's some great stuff out there ... and at great prices.

Mike Rivkin and his wife, Linda, are longtime residents of Rancho Mirage. For many years, he was an award-winning catalogue publisher and has authored seven books, along with countless articles. Now, he's the owner of Antique Galleries of Palm Springs. His antiques column appears Sundays in The Desert Sun. Want to send Mike a question about antiques? Drop him a line at [email protected]