Rare North German Frisian Silver Box, Tea Box, Bredstedt, Meister Topf 1740-60

Matthias Topf, Bredstedt – Baroque Silver Tea Caddy, North Friesland circa 1740–1760 Matthias Topf (active 1719–1761) · Bredstedt, North Friesland, Schleswig-Holstein · Silver · Maker's Mark Only · Rare North German Provincial Silversmithing

A solid silver tea caddy of rectangular form, entirely plain and smooth, with a sliding lid without hinge, executed by master silversmith Matthias Topf in Bredstedt, North Friesland, circa 1740–1760. Height 8 cm (9.5 cm with lid) · width 7 cm · depth 4 cm · weight 145 g. Maker's mark only — no town mark — characteristic of the production of small provincial towns in Schleswig-Holstein in the 18th century.

The absolute sobriety of this tea caddy — complete absence of ornament, plain surfaces, balanced proportions, sliding lid for refilling — is precisely what makes it the most eloquent object of North German provincial Baroque silversmithing: pure functionality, without decorative concession, recalling contemporary forms produced in France, Flanders and England during the George I period. In England and the Netherlands, tea caddies were often produced in pairs — one for green tea, one for black — and this piece may be the sole surviving element of such a travelling or table set.

Matthias Topf, master silversmith documented in Bredstedt, North Friesland, from 1719 to 1761 (Stirling, p. 93), is one of the very few silversmiths whose activity is attested in this small Frisian town in the 18th century. His production — today of extreme rarity on the market — is documented by the maker's mark identified by Stirling in the corpus of Schleswig-Holstein goldsmiths. The absence of a town mark is normal for this region and period: the small towns of North Friesland did not always maintain an active assay office, and only the maker's mark guaranteed the authenticity of the piece.

• Height: 8 cm (9.5 cm with lid) · Width: 7 cm · Depth: 4 cm · Weight: 145 g
• Material: solid silver
• Hallmark: maker's mark Matthias Topf (mark only)
• Maker: Matthias Topf, active in Bredstedt 1719–1761
• Place: Bredstedt, North Friesland, Schleswig-Holstein
• Dating: circa 1740–1760
• Literature: Stirling, Hubert, Goldschmiedezeichen von Altona bis Tondern, p. 93, ed. Wolfgang Scheffler, Neumünster, 1955 · Rosenberg, Marc, Der Goldschmiede Merkzeichen, vols. I–IV, Frankfurt, 1922 · Gruber, Al., Gebrauchssilber des 16. bis 19. Jahrhunderts, Würzburg, 1982
• Condition: very good · minimal traces of use · beautiful colour · good weight

Seen in museums — available to you.

Available for viewing by appointment at our Düsseldorf gallery.

Keywords integrated: Matthias Topf Bredstedt, silver baroque tea caddy North Friesland 1740, Schleswig-Holstein 18th century silversmithing, Stirling Goldschmiedezeichen Altona Tondern, rare provincial silver

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