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Antique silver sale and auctions in the
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Antique silver
English hallmarks
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Antique Silver
Artist: Hester
Bateman 1708 - 1794
Hester Batemans's long career began after the death of her
husband John Bateman(1704-1760. John was a chainmaker in
London, but little is known about him.
After his death, Hester began to build the business,
entering her first silver mark in 1761 and continuing to
expand the business and went on to be one of the best
known of the female silversmiths working in London during
the 18th century.
 She
produced many items in her workshop such as, creamers,
salvers, teapots and serving pieces. While not as well
respected as some of the other fine female silver smiths
like Ann Tanqueray and Elizabeth Buteux, her work is
certainly more affordable to the average collector and
there are more authentic pieces available on the market
By bringing her children and their spouses into the
business, she created a family business which continued
until long after her death. In addition to Hester herself,
she was later joined by her sons, Jonathan(1747-1791) and
Peter Bateman(1740-1825. After Jonathan's untimely death
in 1791, Peter joined with Jonathan's wife Ann and
eventually William Bateman I(1774-1850), who was the
second son of Jonathan and Ann Bateman, and Hester's
grandson.
Together they produced silver pieces well into 1815, at
which point William registered his mark singularly.
William was eventually followed by his son William Bateman
II who continued the family tradition and it appears to
have stopped at his death sometime between 1874 and 1877.
As collectables, Bateman antique silver pieces are sought
after, with pieces by Hester and Jonathan and Peter
Bateman bringing the most. Jonathan and Peter's mark was
only used for 6 months, so it is considered to be very
rare. One additional point is that Hester's pieces were
often over struck, so use care and only purchase pieces
which are clearly marked, if you desire a true HB piece.
Peter and Ann Bateman did many silver pieces, but were
quite prolific with sugar and creamers and they were
eventually joined and then succeeded by William Bateman.
William is considered by many to be the most talented of
the family and produced many quality pieces during his
long career. The attention to detail and overall design of
William's antique silver pieces are notable and reflect
an element of design that is sometimes lacking in his
relatives work.
To view Bateman pieces, I can recommend the Victoria and
Albert Museum in London and certainly one additional fine
collection of Bateman and many other fine makers is the
Huntington Library in San Marino California.
Should you be interested in viewing our Bateman pieces,
which are for sale, please visit us at the
www.thelionpassant.com or contact us at thelionpassant@charter.net
by Charles
Cook
Reprinted with permission
Copyright by Charles Cook |
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