Featured Was ist Das!? Ich habe ein problem mitt ein kleine deutsche silber becher!

Aaaaand that's just about the limit of my highschool German.

Bought this at the flea-market today and I'm having a LOT of trouble translating what little German there is on here...



I know "Arbeiter" is 'worker' or 'labourer', but what the hell is Hoffilber? I've searched as many translation sites, German-English dictionaries...everything. Nothing's coming up.

Comes with standard German hallmarks on the base, and the maker's name of "Wollenweber", which I've found was Edward Wollenweber, a German silversmith in the late 1800s.

 

There's a reference to it here. In Old German.

https://books.google.com/books?id=x...wollenweber munchen hoffilberarbeiter&f=false

Debora

 

"Bayer." would be short for "Bayern" or Bavaria, yes. But I still can't figure out what Hoffilber is. No translations or dictionaries I've looked up have given me an answer.

 

There's another reference to it here. Again, in Old German.

https://opacplus.bsb-muenchen.de/Vt...eries=hoffilberarbeiter&language=de&c=default

Debora

 

It's in that older script where the letter S in the middle of a word looks like F. Not Hoffilber, Hofsilberarbeiter.

 

It appears to translate to "silversmith."

Debora

 

Oooooh!!

OK I got the answer now.

Hof Silber Arbeiter.

"Court silversmith".

Cool! Thanks folks.

 

Kgl. and Bayer. are abbreviations for Königlich Bayerischer. So Königlich Bayerischer Hofsilberarbeiter.
Bayern is Bavaria, capital München, Munich as Davey said. Bavaria was a kingdom from 1806-1918.

There were two types of Hoflieferanten or court suppliers, for the two courts. One was for the royal court, they were allowed to carry the predicate Königlich Bayerischer Hoflieferant, or in this case Silberarbeiter.
The other was for the ducal court, they were allowed to carry the predicate Herzoglich Bayerischer Hoflieferant.

 

Hofsilberarbeiter is far off from Hoflieferant. contrary to a simple Lieferant - which delivered everything that was readily available like flatware, an Arbeiter - like the word already says (worker) - worked directly at the orders of the court for individual pieces asked for by the court. which does not mean in practice that both could not be the same person or the same company and workshop.
Eduard Wollenweber made a.o. the heart-shaped urn for the heart of Ludwig II..

 

Thanks for the help, guys! My highschool-level German is fairly decent, and I'm sure if the text was clearer I would've figured out most of it on my own already, but this heavy gothic font is almost impossible for me to read with my already questionable eyesight!!

 

your item would need research and hands-on inspection by an expert that is a) fluent in German b) knows the different grades and names of the silver trade in Germany and German-speaking countries c) has a knowledge of the silver market insofar as the difference in prices for INDIVIDUALLY made items by a Hofsilberarbeiter and a simple Hoflieferant. the individually made items are IMO much more precious, although your beaker may only be one of a few dozens made for a special occasion as a gift.

 

I don't doubt that! I don't even know what it is, really. I assumed it was meant to be a presentation cup or gift beaker or something. There's NO engraving on it ANYWHERE apart from the marks to the base (maker's mark and the purity mark).

 

Since I don't read German & have a hard time with Gothic script, I had an entertaining time with IM Translator trying to find out what some of the notice at Debora's first link says. The different versions are almost all the result of changing a single letter where I wasn't sure of the transliteration, or putting a space in Hofsilberarbeiter, because it had trouble with that one. I cut out the part about Wollenweber's location:

His Majesty the King, for the occasion of the local fishery exhibition, as the first prize of honor, had a very venerable wine-pan with sauerkraut, made by the hand of the court-silver worker Wollenweber.


His Majesty the King have, as the first prize of honor for the local fishing exhibition, a very valuable wine-vat with sauerkraut, made by the shrewd hand of the farm's silver-worker Wollenweber.


His majesty, the King, as the first prize of honor for the local fishery exhibition, has received a very valuable wine-tasting wine with sauerkraut, made by the shrewd hand of the farm's silver worker Wollenweber.


His Majesty the King, as a first prize of honor for the local fishery exhibition, have a very valuable wine-tasting with Untersas, made by the shrewd hand of the Hofsilber Wollenweber.


His Majesty the King have graciously for the local fishery exhibition as a first prize of honor a very valuable, by the shrewd hand of the Hofsilberarbeiters Wollenweber made Weinfanne with Untersas.


His majesty, the King, as the first prize of honor for the local fishery exhibition, has received a very valuable wine vat with a barrel under the grape of the silver worker Wollenweber.

A partial, trying to get at the main verb:
As the first prize of honor a very valuable wine-ladle, produced by the skilled hand of the silver-worker Wollenweber, has rested.

I did not save the first version, which came up with underfax instead of sauerkraut. Something like alternative fax, I think.

 

Sauerkraut is always good for your body.

 

But what would it do to silver? And how well does it go with fish, really?

 

a good question. could it aggress silver ? is that the reason why Captain Cook kept it in wood barrels and left the silver ones at home ?

 

It could have been a very mild Sauerkraut, not too acid.

Depends on the kind of Sauerkraut, and the kind of fish.

 

I cannot imagine sauerkraut going well with fish. Of any kind. And especially not with silver!!