Nineteenth century artisan

A SINGLE piece of cutlery forged in Forres in the nineteenth century sold at auction for nearly £1000.

Woolley and Wallis lot 347, a silver dessert spoon made by silversmith Robert Stuart in 1840, was bought by a private collector at an auction house in Salisbury, England.

Lucy Chalmers of Woolley and Wallis' silver department confirmed the collector was very keen to add it to their collection from a private source.

She said: "Forres silver is relatively rare and always commands a high price at auction. We have sold pieces in the past, but pieces by Robert Stuart do not come up for auction that often."

Regarding the design, she added: "Fiddle pattern is a very common design so the hammer price was really reflecting the rarity of both Forres silver and the maker."

The Directory of Scottish Provincial Silver confirms Mr Stuart was an active silversmith from 1844 to 1867.

A spokesperson said: "The austerity and simple tastes of the Scotchman are brought to notice by the work of the early craftsmen. The majority of silver articles made were definitely for practical use, rather than for purposes of decoration. Most of the early Scotch silver was used in churches, or else in the gentle art of drinking. In the earliest days of silversmithing in Scotland, it was the general custom for the client to bring his own silver or gold to the craftsman to be wrought at his order. Silver was marked only with the maker's initial and a punch usually inspired to the town symbol.

In this way the customer avoided to pay the Duty reimposed in 1784 and silversmith's work was much less costly.

Records show Robert Stuart was born around 1803 in Elgin to William Stuart and Margaret Brown. He became a jeweller, goldsmith, silversmith and watch maker. In 1838 he moved to Forres and set up business.