Posted 12 years ago
rinehart
(1 item)
i found this in a thrift store polished it up. i can't find a value for insurance , can anyone help. i believe it to be made in attalboro, ma around 1900' the maker was a man named william h saart. around 1906 he expanded his business by bringing his brothers in and changed the name to saart bro. in doing so the makers mark changed as well. the company grew and they became more of silver plating company.
These days with sterling around $35 an ounce, unless the sterling piece is rare or extremely intricate with repousse or made by a famous silversmith, the scrap metal price is a better indicator of it's true value. Unless of course you find a collector; in which case it's worth whatever someone is willing to pay.
I use this website to determine scrap value of sterling pieces:
http://www.silverrecyclers.com/Calculators/ster_calculator.aspx
Most beautiful sugar basket by a fine American silversmith! Condition is an important factor in estimating the value of silver. If it's in good condition, and there is no 'weighted' mark on the base bottom, I would value it at not less than scrap value until you find it good contemporary value, which will be higher than the scrap value. You can try searching for sugar basket under "W. H. SAART CO." and "SAART BROS. COMPANY" - Google, Rubylane, and eBay. Saart hallmarks can be found on p. 213 of Dorothy Rainwater's "Encylopedia of American Silversmith Manufacturers", 5th ed. Per Rainwater, Saart was probably operating before the 1906 incorporation date. Really beautiful basket. So glad that you found this!