Tips For Selling Your Sterling Silver Flatware

Silverware sets tend to get passed down for generations. Often, families own silverware and flatware that’s over a century old. While older generations often kept silverware sets as family heirlooms, younger counterparts are typically less interested in keeping them for sentimental value. After all, large sets of silverware and flatware can take up a significant amount of space and require polishing if pieces have become tarnished over the years. And not many people are willing to display or take the time to polish old candelabras or matching salt and pepper shakers along with their great-grandmother’s forks and spoons.

Fortunately, sterling silverware sets can be worth a decent amount of money, making it worth your time to sell that unwanted silverware. The price of any given silverware set can vary wildly due to several factors, including age, number of place settings, purity of the silver, weight, manufacturer, design, as well as the current market price for silver. If you decide to sell a sterling silverware set you no longer wish to keep, the following tips can help attain top dollar:

Silverware set pieces are either made from real sterling silver or with different metals and plated with silver. It’s integral to determine whether your flatware is sterling silver, coin silver, German silver, or plated silver before trying to sell it. The easiest way to tell? Look at the hallmarks from the manufacturer on the pieces. Those that are silver plated will be marked with phrases such as “silver plate,” “plated,” “EP” for electroplated, or “EPNS” for electroplated nickel silver. Additionally, if there are simply no markings on the silverware, the pieces are most likely silver plated.

Sterling silver flatware, on the other hand, is typically always marked as such. American-made sterling flatware have the hallmark “sterling” or the shortened “ster.” Silverware from other counties are often marked with “925,” which refers to the 92.5% concentration of silver in sterling silver objects. You may also come across flatware marked with the word “coin,” meaning the pieces are made from melted coins. This flatware is typically about 90% silver. Source