Tea strainer - .800 silver - Silver tea strainer 86 g 800

For sale is an exceptionally beautiful and strikingly solidly crafted tea strainer made of genuine silver. The piece was produced in the late 19th or early 20th century in the Neoclassical Louis-seize style of Historicism, and it impresses with its masterful artisanal workmanship.
Particularly noteworthy is the detailed, sculptural relief work on the surrounding rim. Unlike the more commonly found pierced strainer rims, the decorative edge here remains completely solid. It runs around the piece and is adorned with finely worked floral festoons (flower garlands), elegant bows, and classical, antiqued decorative medallions. The gracefully shaped handle continues this floral relief decor harmoniously and gives the object an outstanding visual and tactile quality. The deeply engraved lip shows a clean, perfectly intact perforation pattern. An exquisite collector’s piece for connoisseurs of refined antique table culture.
Marks & Origin The tea strainer is boldly stamped on the back of the rim in several places. High-resolution macro photos reveal a fascinating combination of historical marks:
• A stylized lily (fleur-de-lis) in the center
• A plastically formed pinecone (Zirbelnuss), referencing the famous historical city coat of Augsburg on the right side
• A further mark, which unfortunately is heavily worn (upper half of a crown) on the left side
This deliberately chosen composition of historically unrelated marks clearly identifies the piece as a Spitzenprodukt (top specimen) of the famous Hanau silverware manufactories at the turn of the century (such as Schleissner, Neresheimer, etc.). These master workshops were internationally acclaimed for reviving splendid historical stylistic periods in accomplished quality. To emphasize the antique character, they equipped their works with these ornate fantasy marks ("fantasy punches").
Condition The object is in excellent, undamaged, unrestored original condition. The delicate chasing and relief structures are sharply preserved and have not been flattened by polishing over generations. There are no dents, cracks, deformations, or old solder joints. In the deeper reliefs one finds a fine, authentic silver patina that beautifully accentuates the sculptural effect of the décor.