Not mine, writes Martyn Downer, but the words of respected US publication The Magazine Antiques. The article praises myfamilysilver.com as “a smart business model for antiques dealers” and “the destination for all things silver”.
“It also hosts a charming and informative blog written by John Culme, the noted silver specialist and author whose work includes the indispensable The Directory of Gold and Silversmiths, 1838-1914 (1987). Myfamilysilver.com is a welcome addition to the online world of antiques that makes this venerable material accessible to old and new collectors alike.” Read more here.
As expected, the UK government’s annual Budget statement makes pretty grim reading: tax rises and spending cuts for years to come.
However, in stark contrast to falling financial markets and property prices in the first quarter of the year, the Royal Institute of Surveyors has recently reported an upsurge in interest in the purchasing of fine arts and antiques. The dramatic turnaround was led by jewellery and silver which are traditionally seen as “safe havens” during periods of financial turbulence. The collapse of equity has reminded people, once again, that precious metals will never revert to zero value (unlike some infamous banking shares).
Nevertheless, in comparison to other commodities silver still remains at a historically low value, recommending it strongly to investors. For example, Money Week has figured out that in 1980 (at the height of the Bunker Hunt silver boom) you could buy an average house in the UK for the equivalent of 1000 ounces of silver at £50 per oz.
Today, the same house would cost you (if you could get a mortgage…) 15,000 ounces of silver at £10 per oz. This margin may narrow during the recession but in simple terms it still means that residential property is over-valued and silver is too under-valued. Therefore, moving capital from one to the other makes sense.
Furthermore, a final though to leave you on. It’s very difficult to eat dinner with a semi-detached house!
The life enhancing ability of silver has been obvious to me for a long time. After all, who would not prefer a drawing room lit by Georgian candlesticks?
But the health benefits of silver? These were less well known to me. However, according to a recent advertising campaign by Nivea whose variant of ‘Silver Protect’ deodorants suggest otherwise.
Silver has strong anti-bacterial qualities which can protect the user against infection. This characteristic was noticed (if not fully understood) by our ancestors in antiquity who stored essentials such as wine, water and vinegar in silver jars.
More recently, Australian settlers in the outback apparently suspended antique silver forks in water to preserve and sterilise it. Obviously, silver has always been used for display and to demonstrate wealth but maybe its use to preserve health came first but could only be exploited by the wealthy? Sort of chicken and egg scenario: i.e. those that ate with silver cutlery not only had a better chance of survival but time to make more money and acquire greater power.
It’s a lesson worth heading in these recessionary times. It may be an old wives’ tale but I think Nivea may be on to something…. What do you think?
The Daily Telegraph reported this week that the College of Arms has issued serial entrepreneur and star of BBC’s “Dragon’s Den” Peter Jones with a coat of arms (to go with the CBE he received last year). Appropriately, Jones has adopted a dragon as his crest in tribute to the show which made his name.
Or was it to stop his fellow panellists grabbing the distinctive crest? Jones loves to provoke and challenge the other dragons when presented with a business opportunity in the den. But maybe he has a rival in Duncan Bannatyne ? One version of the Bannatyne family crest is a griffin, a fearsome part-eagle, part-lion beast and a good match against a dragon in a punch-up.
None of the remaining dragons (Deborah Meadan, Theo Paphitis and James Caan) has a crest listed (yet). But the last laugh must go to amiable show presenter Evan Davis.
Among the twenty five varieties of Davis crest is a sleeping lamb. No surprise there. But another is a leaping wolf. Is Evan the original lamb in sheep’s clothing? Bannatyne and Jones had better watch out!
Tags:
BBC,
Coat of Arms,
Deborah Meaden,
Dragon,
Dragons Den,
Evan Davis,
Family Griffin,
Griffin,
James Caan,
Lamb,
Peter Jones,
Theo Pathitis
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John Culme, who for many years has been connected with Sotheby's Silver Department, is author of several books and articles, including The Directory of Gold and Silversmiths, 1838-1914, published in 1987, and co-author with Nicholas Rayner of The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor. He is also a Liveryman of the Goldsmiths' Company, London. 