Description
Early sterling silver basket. Retailed by Tiffany & Co. at 550 Broadway, New<br>York. The use of the 550 Broadway address dates it to 1853-70, Oval shallow bowl<br>and scalloped gadrooned rim with chased and engraved fleurs de lys. Foot raised<br>and lobed with scalloped gadrooned rim and engraved leaves. Swing handle<br>scalloped and gadrooned. William Gale was one of the great New York City<br>silversmiths who created silver retailed by Tiffany & Co. before they made their<br>own silver. 5.75" wide x 7" tall with handle 299.5 grams. No damage, dents or<br>bends. Nice strong hinge on handle.<br><br>Charles Tiffany was born February 15, 1812 in Killingly, Connecticut. About 25<br>years later, in 1837, Charles Tiffany and John Young, and later in 1841, they<br>added J.L.. Ellis as a partner, began Tiffany, Young and Ellis in Lower<br>Manhattan. That company at the time was founded at first to sell fancy goods and<br>stationery. Tiffany bought his parents shares of the company in 1853 and changed<br>the focus of the company to sell upscale jewelry and merchandise. Once Tiffany<br>bought his parent’s shares, the company was renamed to Tiffany & Co. In 1867,<br>Tiffany & Co. was the first United States based company to win an award for<br>excellence in silverware at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. In 1868, the<br>company became incorporated, had four stores and was on the right path to<br>continue to grow to the company that it is today.<br><br>A Humble Start<br>When Young and Tiffany began their business, they originally started off with<br>offering items such as stationery and merchandise before moving on to offering<br>jewelry and silverware. The business continued to grow and manufacture jewelry,<br>and later opened a location in Paris. His stores adopted the standards of<br>European jewelry and therefore, sterling became established in the United States<br>and the American jewelry market.<br><br>Tiffany was determined to obtain one-of-a-kind jewelry. It was that desire which<br>helped fuel how much his products were sought out, specifically among the upper<br>classes of New York. The jewelry created by the company became partially well<br>known because of the wealthy people who desired its products. In the 1830’s,<br>Tiffany made it’s mark in the jewelry world at the time because they clearly<br>marked the prices on their goods. This eliminated the chance that customers<br>would haggle and try to negotiate the prices of the goods that they were<br>purchasing at the time. Additionally, Tiffany’s was unique at the time because<br>they only accepted cash payments and didn’t allow their goods to be purchased on<br>credit.<br><br>With the Civil War threatening jewelry purchasing at the time, Tiffany adjusted<br>the focus of his company and ended up manufacturing swords, medals, light armor<br>and many other items that were needed for war. In 1877, Tiffany & Co. had become<br>such an established name that it easily influenced the industry and was able to<br>make outlandish purchases. This when the now called “Tiffany diamond” (a yellow<br>South African diamond) was purchased for $18,000 at 287 carats. The diamond was<br>cut down to 128.54 carats over nearly a year and was eventually put on display<br>in the Smithsonian. Today, Tiffany & Co. is an American worldwide luxury jeweler<br>and specialty retailer, headquartered in New York City.<br><br>Understanding the Markings<br>While Tiffany & Co. is famous for the “Tiffany diamond” they are even more<br>famous for their use of sterling silver. When looking at actually sterling<br>silver that is made by Tiffany’s there are several markings that can help you<br>figure out the origin and if a piece is indeed made by Tiffany’s or fake. At the<br>start, there were several silversmiths who supplied silver flatware and<br>holloware to Tiffany’s. Each of those silversmiths marked the pieces with their<br>own marks in addition to marking them with Tiffany’s marks. Some of the makes of<br>Tiffany’s sterling silver include William Gale, Gale & Hughes, Wood & Hughes,<br>John Polhemus, Henry Hebbard, William Bogert, Grosjean & Woodward, Moore &<br>Hebbard and John C. Moore.<br><br>In 1868, Moore silversmithing firm was absorbed into Tiffany & Co. and Tiffany’s<br>then began the production of its own silver. It was at that time that the silver<br>was to be marked with the initial of the Artistic Director or the initial of the<br>President of the firm but that was continued until the mid-1960’s. Each design<br>on the silver that Tiffany’s creates represents the long and proud heritage that<br>comes with the company’s history.<br>b70
