liturgical ciborium - Silver plated brass - Twentieth Century

The ciborium has a deep cup and a lid with a cross finial for storing and reserving the consecrated hosts in the tabernacle or for transporting them to the sick/campaign Mass. Campaign Chalice/Ciborium:

Its small size—18 cm tall by 9 cm wide—fits perfectly with portable pieces designed to be part of a chaplain’s movement (used in travel, wars, or rural areas by displaced priests).

Estimated period: 20th century (approximately 1950).

Style and indicators: The stem (the central shaft) features a sculpture or relief with neogothic/eclectic forms or early Art Nouveau style.

The cup and base have simple, machine-turned lines, typical of the semi-industrial production of liturgical objects in the 20th century.

Material and manufacture: Base made of metal: The most common for this type of piece in brass or bronze is brass/bronze cast or alpaca (white metal / German silver).

Exterior finish: It has a silver plate (silver-plated or electroplated). There are areas of wear or greenish/dark patina on the relief shaft, typical of wear of a silver plate over a copper/brass alloy.

Analysis of the base markings:

Reading the digits: In the center of the base a clearly punched serial number is visible (it seems to read 2129 or a similar 4-digit sequence).

What does this marking mean? Catalog/Workshop model number:

In 20th-century industrial or workshop silversmithing or religious workshops in France, Spain, or Germany, pieces made of brass-plated or alloy were not stamped with the sterling silver hallmark (such as “925” or the official guarantee star/mark), but rather with a serial or workshop/catalog model number. This confirms that the piece is mass-produced religious metalwork (brass/bronze with silver plate or alpaca silversmithing).