ELECTROFORMED SPOONS

Silver spoons made by this process are very light in weight (lightweight)  compared to their size.

Electroformed spoons are pretty rare as very few were made using this process,
however, they are not particularly valuable as there is little demand for them.

These spoons are only for display purposes, as they are hollow inside.





left:  electroformed spoon from Napoli (Italy)
right: I suspect this spoon is ca 1851 because I have found a number of similar looking spoons which were displayed at the Great Crystal Exhibition in London


Crystal Exibition building, London, 1851


back of spoons shown

What is electroforming

In 1810, Professor Moritz von Jacobi of St. Petersburg, Russia developed a scientific process which used electricity to fuse copper (silver or other metal)  to materials like glass or wax.
The electrofusing creates an entirely new layer.  The base material is called a mandrel and it is usually removed after the new metal layer has been created.
Thus the spoon is 'hollow'.
This is NOT the same process as electroplating of silver on a non-silver substrate.

The process was first used on spoons and some types of jewelry exhibited at the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London from  1 May to 11 October, 1851.
Most of the items created with this process are of an artistic nature and/or very high tech components sometimes used this process.

Very few spoons are made with this process.



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