Set of six vintage hotel ware silver-plated WMF sundae spoons, made for Holland & America Line, the cruise liner company

Once used in the dining rooms or onboard-deck on one of Holland & America's cruise ships, now decommissioned, a set of six of these long-handled elegant silver-plated sundae spoons makes the perfect present for the friend who adores ice cream. Each spoon is marked WMF and the tip of the handle bears the hallmark Holland & America circular crest, the Art Deco stylised prow of a large transatlantic steamship (see image).

History

WMF, Metallwarenfabrik Straub & Schweizer, opened in 1853 as a metal repairing workshop, yet by 1900 they were the world's largest producer and exporter of household metalware, mainly in the Jugendstil, the Art Nouveau style; designed in the WMF Art Studio under sculptor and designer Albert Mayer, who was director until 1914.

Despite the economic turmoil of the two world wars that followed, WMF stayed on the leading edge of product design and quality household goods made from metal. Since the demand for decorative items declined due to widespread economic hardship, the company focused on cutlery, serving dishes and kitchenware such as metal graters, colanders, pots, casseroles, and frying pans.

WMF expand its cutlery business throughout the 1920s, including the making of solid silver cutlery. By 1928, cutlery sales accounted for roughly two-thirds of WMF's total revenues, and flatware continued to be one of its mainstay lines until the end of the 1960s, to which our WMF ocean liner cutlery stands testament.

Country of origin: Europe

Date of manufacture: c.1960

Material: EPNS (electro-plated nickel silver)

Length: 22cm

Condition: good, considering their 60 years of service, with a good share of scuffs and light scratch marks, all of which add to their character and reflect their seafaring, ice cream extravaganza history.

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