Page 96 - Chinese SIlver By Adrien Von Ferscht

This pepperette was sold online in 2014 for a
not inconsiderable figure. It was described as
being “Antique Chinese Export Silver Filigree
Enamel Pepper Shaker with Tractor”!

Where to begin? Firstly, the fact it depicts a
tractor immediately tells us it cannot be antique.
I am not aware of a “tractor amongst prunus”
being a traditional auspicious Chinese
decorative motif!

The item also carries a .800 silver mark. If this
came from the East, the nearest country to
China that uses this silver purity standard is
Japan; it doesn’t look particularly Japanese
either.

Somebody did pay relatively a lot of
money for this item. This and the many
filigree canisters that get sold either
online or in auction houses are causing
s e r i o u s d a m a g e t o t h e i r o w n
reputations as “experts” - it also creates
a minefield out of a silver category that
deserves a lot better.

18th century English has a wonderful
word for such items: ‘gewgaws’. The
dictionary meaning is quite appropriate
under the circumstances - “a showy but
valueless trinket”.