An elegant set of four coasters in made out of Old Sheffield Plate, made in England in the early part of the Victorian era, circa 1860. It is extremely rare to find a set of four as coasters from the middle of the 19th century are usually seen in pairs. Old Sheffield Plate is the process of fusing a layer of silver on to a layer of copper. The process was discovered by Thomas Boulsover in 1742 and is highly sought after due to its rarity and age as it was superseded by cheaper electroplate in the early 1840's.

The pie crust borders are decorated with a shell motif and the wood bases in fantastic condition have been set with a silver cartouche ready for engraving the family crest or the owner’s initials. It is easy to imagine how opulent the dining table would be when decorated with these bottle coasters and they are as functional and decorative today as they would have been two centuries ago.

Condition: excellent, please refer to photographs

Dimensions: 20cm diameter, 4.5cm high