Spooners / Spoon Holders of quadruple silverplate

Today's subject is antique quadruple silver plate spoon holders. These two-handled vessels are also called "spooners" or "spoon goblets". The vase shaped spoon holder is exclusively an American item and invention.

Other types of spoon holders are spoon trays, spoon racks, and combination sugar bowls and spoon racks and even egg cups with spoon racks.

The 1857 Rogers Bros. Mfg. Co. catalog featured one of the earliest known styles of a spoon holder. Years later (1867) the Meriden Britannia Company offered 15 different styles of spoon holders to customers. Most of these were made to match Meriden's tea services.

The earliest spoon holders were usually vase shaped and had two handles. Most spoon holders during this time were pedestal based; only a few had four feet.

Fancier types of spoon holders began to appear in the 1870's. Some had incorporated dinner bells into the design.

It was during this time that many silverplate manufactures began to advertise spoon holders on the same pages as their tea service sets, thus incorporating spooners as an integral part of a complete tea service.

Distinguishing spoon holders of this type from waste (slop) bowls, can be done by their handles and by being slightly taller and more slender in shape and design.

Combination sugar bowls and spoon racks became more prominent around 1874. Middletown Plate Company illustrated 5 styles in 1874. Two of these combinations held only 6 teaspoons while the others held 12. These popular combinations continued to be manufactured well into the early twentieth century.

You can find an exceptional example of a Pairpoint Quadruple Silver Plate Spoon Holder Spooner here http://www.abesilverman.com/A942.html/