Victorian silver egg cruet

Pretty antique silver cruet frame with six original removable silver egg cups; each held in its place by a silver peg on the base. All pieces are crisply pierced and engraved with delicate bead pattern borders.

An egg cruet is a table item for holding and serving boiled eggs. The earliest known examples date from the 1740s and continued to be made throughout the Georgian and Victorian periods, and into the early 20th century. Unusual examples may have a removable salt bowl or perhaps a toast rack. The egg cup interiors and spoon bowls were often gilded.