Early Georgian Silver Coffee Pot

This early Georgian Britannia standard silver coffee pot is a work of subtle elegance. Crafted by London silversmith Samuel Hood, it displays the best qualities of the earliest Georgian silver designs: clean lines enhanced with striking engraved decoration. The classic form is engraved with a finely engraved coat of arms with a knight’s helmet and bird crest with Tudor roses adorning the shield.

A 1697 Act of Parliament introduced the Britannia standard of silver to prevent British sterling coins from being melted to create silver plate when demand for domestic silver rose after the English Civil War. Britannia silver, indicated by the newly ordered Britannia hallmark, required a higher purity of 95.8% silver, as opposed to sterling silver, which is made of 92.5%. The standard remained compulsory only until 1720, when sterling silver was again approved for use by silversmiths, making Britannia pieces like these some of the rarest and most sought-after silver items on the market today.

Hallmarks for Britannia standard silver, London, 1710

7" wide x 6" deep x 10 1/4" high