antique youth uniform

[Jock Scot]

date letter

Are there any specific clues that help dating these - e.g. chains, strap style, etc? The caps seem to be even more difficult to date.

It is relatively easy to date and even identify the maker of British silver, just look for the hallmarks stamped on the individual pieces, for example each silver link on a chain will have a "date letter" hallmark, plus others(usually 5 in all) that can be dated. If there are no hallmarks, the piece in question may still be silver, but it cannot by British law, be sold as silver. There are pages and pages on British hallmarks( dates, maker, assay office, official silver stamp which are not always easy to read on the item) and other information to be found on Google should you wish to delve more deeply into the subject. A rule of thumb that is not entirely accurate, when it comes to British silver is: No hallmark, its not silver. .................................................. ......even though it may be, but without those hallmarks its value is diminished.

BE CAREFUL! Silver buttons with say, early Victorian date stamps, may well be transferred on to a later constructed coat, simply because the owner wants to keep the buttons. I have such a jacket and the unknowing may well make false assumptions about its age by looking at the hallmarks on the buttons. The date on the buttons, chain links, etc., could easily be 150 or more years older than the garment, item, that you are looking at.