Large Victorian silver gallery tray
Large Victorian silver gallery tray
6508
An exceptional antique Victorian silver oval tray with galleried border and hand-engraved centre. The gallery has pierced slatted detail overlaid with cast garlands and a ram's head, and with a fine beaded border. The centre is finely hand-engraved with swags and garlands within a scrolling band incorporating flowers and mythical heads.
This impressive silver tray has two cast handles and is mounted on eight cast button feet.
The serving tray as we know it today is an evolution of the salver, which was a term used in England from the mid-seventeenth century to denote a flat tray without handles, usually made of silver. Some salver designs feature supporting feet - usually three or four.
The word salver derives from the Latin salvare meaning to save. Originally, food or drink intended for royalty would be initially tasted by a servant for signs of poison before it reached the royal top table. Being served on the salver indicated that this process had taken place and the food and drink was now fit for a king.
Salvers later became commonplace in aristocratic and wealthy homes and Samuel Pepys is recorded as an owner of a salver, signifying his high social standing.
This item is not available online. Please contact us directly to buy this piece.
Dimensions:
1896
London
Excellent
RELATED ITEMS
