Postby Maurice Meslans » 04 Nov 2013, 03:52
I am afraid when it comes to Strasbourg silver, I am either the expert in this country, or one of the leading ones. The problem is that Strasbourg silver, unlike some French silver, does not have date letters. The stuffing spoon was made by Jean Michel Merck. He worked from 1762 until 1789. Without other information it is impossible be be more accurate. As far as records go, while some American silversmiths left day books, it it quite uncommon to find ones left by French silversmiths. My guess is that it was less important to the heirs, and of course constant wars have a tendency to destroy ephemera. I did realize I haven't done a Google search for some time, so I did so again. There was no mention of any other information on Merck, and only a handful or two of his works have surfaced, auction houses often ignore or just mention coats of arms, but none seem to be pertinent. Thanks for the recommendation.
Maurice Meslans