1099 - Silver miniature sailing ship, 833 silver, Netherlands, crew, movable flag, rocking stand

Silver miniature sailing ship, 833 silver, Netherlands, crew, movable flag, rocking stand 833 silver, delicately worked miniature of a single-masted sailing ship on a rocking stand, Netherlands, hallmarked on the rudder with the Dutch standard mark for 833 silver and an indistinct maker's mark. Flat hull with raised bow and stern, mast with pennant, mainsail with curved gaff and two headsails to the bowsprit, sails with embossed textile texture, fastened to mast and stay with wire loops, rigging of twisted wire, at the stern a flagstaff with movable flag, on deck a cabin superstructure with sloping planked cover, hatch and two crew members as figures. Stand of brackets with scrolled ends on a curved runner. Good condition commensurate with age. 10.5x3x12.5 cm (LxWxH), weight 45 g. 360-degree photo available on our website. Silver miniatures have a long tradition in the Netherlands: from the 2nd half of the 17th century wealthy Amsterdam burgher women had their dolls' houses furnished with tiny silver copies of household goods, and in the 18th century silversmiths such as Arnoldus van Geffen specialised entirely in this miniature silver. Demand for such pieces continued until the end of the 19th century, and silver miniatures are still made in the Netherlands today. The ship model with rigging of twisted wire, crew and rocking stand stands in this tradition of dolls' house silver. The standard 833/1000 was the second Dutch silver standard until 1953; since then 835/1000 has applied.