Sheffield Plate Presentation Salver with Grapevine Motifs

• Grapevine Motif - The grapevine motif is a decorative design that features grapevines, leaves, and grapes and is commonly used in various forms of art and decoration, including jewellery, textiles, pottery, and architecture.
  
  In jewellery, the grapevine motif is often used to create decorative elements such as pins, brooches, necklaces, and bracelets. The design can be executed in a variety of materials, including precious metals such as gold and silver, and can be embellished with gems or enamel.
  
  The grapevine motif is a popular symbol in many cultures, representing abundance, prosperity, and fertility. In ancient times, grapevines were associated with Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and celebration, and were used to decorate wine vessels, temples, and other sacred objects.
  
  In addition to its cultural significance, the grapevine motif is also appreciated for its aesthetic appeal. The intertwining branches and clusters of grapes create a graceful, flowing design that is both beautiful and versatile. Whether used in jewellery, textiles, or other forms of decorative arts, the grapevine motif continues to be a popular and enduring symbol of abundance and prosperity.
• Acanthus - A stylized leaf motif, one of the primary decorative elements of classical Greek and Roman architecture, derived from the genus of flowering plants in the family Acanthaceae, native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Mediterranean area. It is a common element in classical Greek and Roman design, and is often seen in Corinthian and Composite order columns and used as a decorative element in English, European and Australian furniture, particularly on the curve of a leg, and as decoration for a corbel.
• Sheffield Plate - Sheffield plate was the first commercially viable method of plating metal with silver. The method of plating was invented by Thomas Boulsover, a Sheffield Cutler, in 1743 and involved sandwiching an ingot of copper between two plates of silver, tightly binding it with wire, heating it in a furnace and then milling it out in to sheet, from which objects could be made.
  
  Originally used by its inventor to make buttons, the potential of the material was quickly realised, and soon it was being used to fashion boxes, salvers and jugs, and not long after that candlesticks and coffee pots, and other traditional tableware.
  
  Although there was a considerable saving in the amount of silver used, Old Sheffield Plate manufacture was more labour intensive than solid silver, meaning higher labour costs. This meant that Old Sheffield Plate was very much a luxury product, and only available to the very wealthy.
  
  The thickness of the silver means that many 18th century Sheffield Plate pieces still have a good layer of silver, while electroplated pieces (EPNS), may have been replated several times over their lifetime. Where the silver has worn off the Sheffield plate the soft glow of the copper base can be seen underneath. However this is not an infallible guide that the piece is Sheffield Plate, as many EPNS items were also plated on to a copper base.
  
  Most Sheffield plate items are unmarked, whereas most elecroplated items display manufacturers names or marks, quality indications such as "A1", "EP", together with pattern or model numbers.
  
  Sheffield plate was made commercially between 1750 and 1850.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• salvers - silver plate items 53
• Sheffield plate - other items 377