Arthur Stone Arts & Crafts Sterling Silver Serving Dish, Gardner, MA, 1912

This lovely shallow bowl or serving dish was hand made in Arthur Stone's Gardner, Massachusetts shop in the early 20th century. It is always nice to have pieces engraved with their original presentation dates. It has curved sides with a wide rim. Applied around the edge are multiple wires of varying sizes for both decorating and strengthening the piece.

The surface is masterfully chased with double-incised lines that form arches around the rim and semicircles with half-moon terminals around the interior edge. Twelve flowers are chased between the arches and consist of two alternating variations of the same flower - one being in a stage of growth and the other in full bloom. The edge shimmers with fine hammering. The underside is monogrammed 'G.B./ 1912'.

Arthur Stone was the undisputed master silversmith of the Boston arts and crafts movement. His shop produced some of the finest silver ever made, and many of the journeymen who worked for him were masters in their own right. Unlike other shops, Stone allowed his journeymen to mark their work. In this case, Herbert Taylor raised this piece. Stone did all the chasing on pieces made before his 1924 stroke. It is these pieces, showing Stone's own hand, which are most prized by collectors and museums.

This lovely server is marked underneath with Stone's anvil trademark, 'STERLING/ T'. It measures 9 inches in diameter by just shy of 1 inch high, weighs 15.25 troy ounces and is in very good antique condition with light scratches to the interior.