Maidenhead knop spoon

The 'maiden' was adopted as the cognizance of the Mercers' Company in the 14th century. Spoons with maidenhead finials were very common, and many were purchased or commissioned by Mercers. The earliest examples of the type in silver were listed in an inventory of Durham Priory in 1446 and the Mercers' Company have one maidenhead spoon dating to 1630; one of thirteen spoons given by John Banks, Mercer, to Christ's Hospital, made by Robert Jygges, London. In 1633-4 the Second Warden of the Mercers recorded that he had 'paid for 2 spoones with maydenheades more then rec'd of Thomas Tudnam butler who lost the same, xijd' (Second Wardens' Accounts 1630-39). See also I Sing of a Maiden: The Story of the Maiden of the Mercers' Company by Anne Sutton, 1998. Latten is a binary alloy of copper (70-80%) and zinc (20-30%). So the composition is identical to brass and the terms brass and latten are used interchangeably in early texts. In the 17th century the alloy often included a third element of iron (1-2%) usually an impurity, which results in a rather brittle metal. The proportion of iron seems to increase during the course of the 17th century. Latten spoons were not made in large numbers in England after the end of the 17th century. Latten spoonmakers are an ellusive group, and, the dating of latten spoons rests largely on stylistic features and their similarility to pewter and silver spoon styles