Meriden Silver twirl cup pattern name and history needed.

This has Meriden Silver Stamp, Quadruple Plate I believe this piece is from about 1850's but need help identifying the pattern. I can only find one image where piece was sold on etsy in 2013 for $80. I would like name of pattern if possible as well as any history known on it. I personally like the patina on it but i was wondering if i should clean it or leave it alone.

 

Much later in the 1800s than the 50s because of the quadruple plate stamp.

 

I would guess around 1875-80 earliest. Their 1871 catalog was showing "triple plate" and they stopped using Quadruple Plate in the mid-1890s (according to sources I checked.) And btw - it's not Meriden Silver, it's Meriden Britannia.

 

Thank you for the information. Would you happen to know if the "12" is a pattern number? (or maybe its an L2??)

 

It should be the inventory (or design) number. And it is 12.

 

Hello @LoveVintageThings & welcome to the forum!!

That is not patina, it is tarnished & if not cleaned off will eventually cause damage to the piece.

Get yourself some good silver polish (I like Simichrome) & apply to the pieces with a soft cloth & remove with another clean soft rag. Considering the darkness of the tarnish you may have to apply the polish a couple of times.

Whatever you do DO NOT use any type of dip (Tarnex is the work of the devil) or the method using aluminum foil.

I will lay odds you will like it much better when it is all cleaned up.

 

I did a few quick searches but could not find this pattern & it may not have had an actual pattern name. You can check Replacements to see if you can find anything.

https://www.replacements.com/search...K1VFKKkrMSwGJ+6YWZaak5ik4FWWWJOblZSYqxdYCAA==

 

Thank you! I did check them early on in my search. I've been looking for information on it for past couple of weeks. I sent an email to Meridan Historical society...maybe they will have some information on the history of it. I find it interesting that I CAN'T find any info on it! lol

 

Agree. When it comes to silverplate (and silver), do clean!

 

Get yourself some good silver polish (I like Simichrome) & apply to the pieces with a soft cloth & remove with another clean soft rag. Considering the darkness of the tarnish you may have to apply the polish a couple of times.

Just ordered it on Amazon and waiting to get it! Thank you!

 

I agree that you should try to clean any tarnish off silver plated items such as this one. But if you find that does not affect the darkness at all, it may have been artificially applied by the manufacturer as a style thing at the time and cannot be removed. I have a couple items that were made that way (that happen to also be quad plate.) This one will probably be okay, but I just thought I should warn you.

 

On that note has anyone ever noticed that quad plate has a tendency to tarnish in a specific way that is unique to it? I mean tarnish is tarnish I guess but I’ve always thought quad looks different. I don’t have a piece in front of me so I’m struggling to describe it well but I think it’s often darker. I can look at a piece and with very regular accuracy say “oh that’s quad” before picking it up and checking the base.

 

I believe silver plate will tarnish to a dark blue.

 

Silverplate in my experience does tend to tarnish a bit different than solid silver. Lots of colors and what coin people call “toning”. Specifically quad plate gets a certain look imo though.