Rare Ashville Silvercraft Heavy Sterling Silver Arts & Crafts Era Large Platter
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:1941342 | Brand: Ashville Silvercraft |
| Style: Arts & Crafts/Mission Style | Age: 1900-1940 |
| Pattern: Hammered | Type: Platter |
Very collectible hand made antique large round serving platter from the Arts and Crafts period of the early 1920s has a beautiful, hand hammered texture and a wide flange.Hallmarked, "ASHEVILLE SILVERCRAFT HANDWROUGHT STERLING".Monogrammed, "JFB".Weighs 35.47 troy ounces.***Gold plate stand not included. Used as a prop only to show silver platter standing up. $20.00 bills not included, just used to show size of platter***Asheville Silvercraft was opened in 1924 by preeminent Arts & Cra...fts Silversmith, William Waldo Dodge, (1895-1971), in Asheville, North Carolina. The mission statement of Asheville Silvercraft announced that it would create work “of no transient style, but based upon the fundamentals of beauty, good proportion, beauty of materials and honest craftsmanship, ” and they were very successful.One of the unintended consequences of World War I was the training of wounded soldiers in the fields of handicrafts: pottery, weaving, woodworking, woodcarving and metalsmithing. This training took place primarily in Veteran’s Hospitals and sanitariums, where soldiers spent months recuperating from amputations, serious wounds and tuberculosis brought on by exposure to deadly mustard gas.Such training led William Waldo Dodge (1895-1971) from the field of architecture into that of silversmithing and from his childhood home of Washington, DC south to Asheville, NC. Dodge opened his first silver shop in Asheville in 1924 under the name of Asheville Silvercraft. After moving to the prestigious Biltmore Forest community a few miles away, he renamed his business The Dodge Silver Shop (1927-1942).Although he operated during an era when most people today assume the Arts & Crafts style had fallen out of favor, Dodge’s hand-hammered bowls, flatware, tea sets, platters and candlesticks remained popular until a shortage of materials forced him to close during World War II.Collectors looking for examples of Dodge silver should note the following:~ Sterling silver marked “Asheville Silvercraft” was made by Dodge from 1924-1927~ Dodge sterling silver is noted for its heavy weight and unique hammering styles.~ Dodge’s hollowware and serving ware is far more rare than his low, flared bowls.
