Decorate Your Holiday Table in Silver
The Victorians adored gadgets and were eager to adopt the latest technology. Their love of gadgets is also evident in the number of eating utensils. A proper Victorian dinner table was set with a felt cloth to protect the table from heat and a clean white damask cloth. The damask cloth was removed before the dessert course was served. Place mats with an otherwise uncovered table were never used at dinner, although they were acceptable for lunch. This permitted the highly polished table to show.
The Victorians developed tools, including a variety of eating utensils for every imaginable food. There were grapefruit spoons, oyster dishes, bone dishes, knife holders, pickle casters and more.
Antique Silver Pickle Castor
Pickle castors were produced in a variety of colors and decorations. Jars were made of glass and the frame was cast in silver The set included a silver fork to gather the pickle from the jar. When not in use, the fork hung on the frame.
Condiment sets were another standard item on the Victorian table. Condiment bottles were made in various colors of glass. Some sets included several different types of bottles for various condiments whereas other sets included bottles for two condiments. The bottles rested in a silver frame.
Antique Condiment Set
Not all Victorian serving and eating utensils were silver. Pieces that are silver are often marked .925. This indicates the piece is sterling silver, the kind that tarnishes and requires polishing every so often. However, it is primarily an American tradition to mark sterling in this way, and not all manufacturers marked their sterling. In England it is common to find sterling silver unmarked and marked with the manufacturers mark, such as a lion or family crest. British silver markings also identify the piece by town, date, and duty mark.
Silver tongs will be necessary if you are serving coffee or tea with sugar cubes rather than sugar packets tucked into a bowl, at least let the bowl be silver! If you are serving fish, there is a fish slice which is shaped like a large kitchen knife.
The egg frame is another interesting piece. The egg frame was designed to hold a breakfast egg and spoon. Grapefruit and orange spoons were designed with pinched end and serrated edges to allow for removing the sections of the fruit with ease and without squirting other guests! Another interesting spoon is the mote spoon.
The mote spoon is a large perforated spoon used to remove berries from juice. Smaller versions are still made today.
Silver Mote Spoon
I find the world of antique Victorian silver fascinating. Between now and the holidays I will be on the lookout for interesting pieces I will bring to my holiday table
Christmas Dinner Menu
from Godey's Lady's Book, December 1890
Raw Oysters
Bouillon
Fried smelts
Sauce tartare
Potatoes a la Maitre d' Hotel
Sweetbread Pates
Peas
Roast Turkey
Cranberry Sauce
Roman Punch
Quail with Truffles
Rice Croquettes
Parisian Salad
Crackers and Cheese
Nesselrode Pudding
Fancy Cakes
Fruit
Coffee
Bon Apetit!
Till next time stay well, stay happy
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