Perhaps, you thought of collecting couple of vintage plates to serve with or just love to have a complete set available for special events. Regardless, it is going to be helpful to be aware of the small things about vintage silverware and on what to check when buying one.

Silver Plate vs. Sterling

When set on a table, sterling silverware was a symbol of wealth in early America, England and Europe. In the last century, with the introduction of electroplating or silver plating, it becomes more affordable for average households.

Silver plated plates are what you’ll find most often. These pieces have the company name and marker like Quadruple plate or A1 on them. Additionally, sterling silver plates are rarer and are marked with the marker’s name or the initials on it.

Deciding on the Pattern

If you want to collect from a certain pattern, then expect that this will be time consuming and quite difficult too. There are literally hundreds of different styles as well as patterns you’ll come across. It might be smart to try mixing and matching vintage plates that you can find instead. As a matter of fact, this is a great way of collecting vintage silverware.