Customer Reviews

Starting To Collect Silver

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Ian Pickford is my kind of writer! He approaches the stuffiest of subjects with a down-to-earth style that fascinates his reader with neat silver facts beginning on Page 1! For example, did you know that pure silver is self-sterilizing (bacteria cannot live on its surface) or that silver is so malleable that one Troy Ounce can be made into a wire 40 miles long? The book also contains a clear and concise explanation of hallmarking systems and how silver is made as well as good examples of the types of items a new collector is likely to encounter. Unlike some other books on the subject, his explanations are not limited to a specific piece but cover things to look for within a category, such as candlesticks, coffee pots, or cigarette boxes, to name just a few. Other chapters cover the subjects of silver plate, fakes & forgeries, and how to care for fine silver. This is my favorite book on facts about silver (not just the antique variety) and I'd highly recommend it to anyone interested in the subject.

This book has the same faults as similiar books on furniture,
china, etc, in that it assumes you are a new collector of
moderate means, say, $250,000. Most of the material is 18th century or earlier, and it should have gone to the end of the 19th, if the title of the book means anything. The people who write these books are used to dealing with museums, well-heeled collectors and high-profile dealers, people with whom I rarely come into contact in my modest collecting experiences. I do not question the knowledge imparted by Mr. Pickford, merely the usefulness of it. "Only rarely will a rococo salver of asymmetric shape be found". Thank you, Ian, I will keep that in mind.

Pickford's Starting to Collect Antique Silver is splendidly innlustrated, clearly and entertainly, not to say gracefuly, written (with just a touch of irony in a few spots!), well laid-out, and very useful and informative.

Pickford includes short chapters on the history of silver and its production, the history of hallmarks, a discusion of how silveware is made, and one of the most useful and well-presented tables of date and place marks I have seen. There are generous color and B&W plates illustrating different kinds of silverware and the evolution of each type. Pickford gives valuable hints as to how to begin collecting (and what is collectable) as well as very useful information about the care and cleaning of old silver.

The book does not include a list of silversmiths and their marks, for which the interested reader must go elsewhere, but these are perhaps beyond the intended scope of the book. Make no mistake, this is a splendid achievement and a very valuable book, and no one with an interest in the subject should hesitate to buy it.

Highly recommended.

NICE BOOK HAD WHAT I NEEDED THANKS FOR PROMPT SERVICE. NICE BOOK. HOPE TO FIND A FORTUNE IN STERLING BEFORE THE DOLLAR TANKS AND WE GO TO THE CAMPS.

a fundamental guide to evaluate antique silver