Gorham Antique Sterling Silver Letter Scale, Providence, RI, 1891

This wonderful and uncommon item was used to weigh letters. We've never had one of these before and it is lovely. The curved scale, adorned with flowers and leaves, measures from 0 to 12 ounces. Below the decorative scale is a winged bird grasping a letter in its beak. I find humor in hoping Gorham's designer meant this to be a carrier pigeon. The weighted pendulum is also ornate, along with the arrow hand, weighing clip, and hook.

This fun item is marked with Gorham's trademark and 'STERLING/ 10' along with the lion-head date mark for 1891. It measures just shy of 6.75 inches long and is in excellent antique condition.

Gorham Archives image courtesy of the John Hay Library, Brown University.