Has anyone any info on these?
raycyca
Posts: 1,638 ✭✭✭
I got these at an estate sate awhile ago. They are sterling silver, 92.5% silver of course. They weigh about 50 Troy oz except for a small block of wood in the middle. Silver is at $30 today. I asked my local coin dealer what they were paying for sterling. The response was $19 per ounce! That’s the same they quoted when silver was at $23 per ounce? Anyone else have any input? Thanks a lot in advance. I know, go elsewhere, no question there! 
You only live life once, enjoy it like it's your last day. It just MIGHT be!
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What are they??
In any case, anything marked Tiffany is certainly worth far more for what it is than as scrap.
Furthermore, they are are marked "weighted", so there is a non-silver component inside that undoubtedly makes up a lot of the weight.
They are silver paperweights, indeed there is a small piece of wood about 3 1/2 long, 2 inches wide by 1/2 inch deep. Weighs about 3 ounces, maybe? I've never seen them before..
Yup, keep those papers from flying as the oscillating fan swings around. Like the font on the embossed words
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If there's a wooden block inside, how do you determine how much actual silver you have?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Generally you peel them when you scrap them. Same as with candlesticks.
But how big are they? They are pretty heavy. I'm guessing there is more than wood in the middle. I would guess that the only silver is a thin outer layer.
What is the wood doing? That would lessen the weight relative to the usual lead or concrete weighting. Is the wood just a leg on the bottom?
I don't know about "far more". Not all Tiffany carries a huge premium. Try to sell monogrammed place settings, for example.
Obviously, you can determine the silver content if you scrap them but with the Tiffany marking, they have collector value above its melt value. It could be brass with heavy silver plating as far as we know.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
I agree. But the OP was trying to scrap them and you asked how you know the weight. A Tiffany dealer would probably know. There are, for example, standard weights for things like knives and watch cases so dealers don't strip them all b to find out. Standard half ounce for knives, for example.
The silver value is likely minimal. Probably 2-3 ounces each, if I had to guess. For a weighted candlestick, you usually only get 10 to 20% of the weight in silver foil.
Edited to add: if it were plated, it would say plated not weighted. Weighted indicates sterling foil over something else. Sometimes it's lead, often it was mortar or concrete.
They are silver scrap and little more. If they were exceptional Tiffany items, which they are not, they might bring a collector premium. Just the Tiffany name isn't enough. I see a melt bucket in their future.
A quick interweb search found several. Apparently they are not that old - circa 1980s or so. Asking prices on ebay are between $100 and $500 dollars. One sold for $76.
All of the examples I found were engraved, which is the draw for these when originally sold due to the large flat surface. Yours being unengraved might bring a premium?
One picture of the base showed the felt peeled back to reveal the wood and thin silver shell. As mentioned, the wood is not the "weighted" part - there is undoubtedly something else there.
I'd really suggest/prefer they go to someone who wants them as Tiffany paper weights. I think you'd be very disappointed with the return on investment if you broke them apart.