Quality Sporrans for less money

**OC Richard** · 7th October 22, 03:53 AM

Here's an interesting pair!

An EW3 bearing the W E Scott 1953 patent number. I don't know how long they stamped their sporrans with the patent number, perhaps until around 1960.

I would need to see the stamp on the cantle to know if it's Sterling or silverplate.

With it a much more recent Prince Charlie sporran with chrome or whatever cantle.

Both sporrans are seal, so USA buyers take their chances.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/22518906426...tion=10%7C3000

Also a quality Evening sporran with silverplate cantle, probably by W E Scott Edinburgh.

I'm not sure of the white fur. These white sporrans are seen in a variety of fur including rabbit and even artificial fur.

There was something of a fad of using artificial fur around the 1960s. My understanding is that at that time it wasn't considered second-rate, as we would do today.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/23472415090...tion=10%7C3000

**OC Richard** · 16th October 22, 05:08 AM

This brown seal Evening sporran, made in Scotland, is still up from a USA seller for just under $100 with shipping.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/15512760793...tion=10%7C3000

There's still one of the new-looking Nicoll Brothers evening sporrans up, price has been reduced to just under $100 but shipping will take it a bit over.

It's bovine fur rather than seal which is more or less standard for the USA market due to our seal import ban.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/12542053130...tion=10%7C3000

**OC Richard** · 23rd October 22, 04:02 AM

Nice leather Day sporran stamped KA (Kinloch Anderson) in seemingly perfect condition for a very good price.

It would be interesting to know whether they made sporrans in-house or got sporrans from some other maker.

That stamp that has knotwork running all around the flap's border does appear in the Anderson's 1955 catalogue:

I've seen several examples, some stamped Nicoll Brothers, some stamped Kinloch Anderson. I can't recall this stamp being used by Forsyth or W E Scott.

Here's the current Ebay sporran at bottom left, along with some vintage examples. Note that they all have the old-school stud closures rather than the more modern press-buttons. The current Ebay KA one lacks the bound flap rim and scribe-lines on the body.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/35434392797...tion=10%7C3000

**OC Richard** · 2nd November 22, 03:17 AM

Far above our normal price range here, but a magnificent Frederick Narborough hand-chased cantle and long-link chain seal sporran here in the USA.

This is the same "runic" pattern that FN regularly made for bagpipe mounts. This cantle has the bosses done in repousse; bagpipe mounts are seen both repousse and left flat.

FN made identical cantles, buckles, and bagpipe mounts in solid German Silver, both left plain and silver-plated, in Sterling Silver, and far less often in solid brass. Without examining this cantle I don't know which. One would think that if a cantle bore silver hallmarks the seller would mention it, but sometimes not.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/14479206087...tion=10%7C3000

Here are examples of four different FN and D&N cantle patterns, their "runic" is lower right, while upper right combines their runic and repousse thistle. They often combined patterns on sporran cantles but I can't recall seeing combined-pattern FN/D&N bagpipe mounts.

**OC Richard** · 2nd November 22, 03:45 AM

Here's a quality sporran for less money that I didn't mention.

It's another wonderful Frederick Narborough cantle, probably silver-plated German Silver, possibly Sterling Silver, in full repousse thistle.

The Ebay auction closed yesterday, when last I checked, around 6 hours before close, it was under $30.

I didn't mention it here because it had active bidders (who I try not to interfere with) and because I had alerted somebody about it privately, quite good hands for it to end up in.

If anybody here was following it, what did it sell for?

**JPS** · 2nd November 22, 05:20 AM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

Here's a quality sporran for less money that I didn't mention.

It's another wonderful Frederick Narborough cantle, probably silver-plated German Silver, possibly Sterling Silver, in full repousse thistle.

The Ebay auction closed yesterday, when last I checked, around 6 hours before close, it was under $30.

I didn't mention it here because it had active bidders (who I try not to interfere with) and because I had alerted somebody about it privately, quite good hands for it to end up in.

If anybody here was following it, what did it sell for?

I wasn't the buyer, unfortunately, but it went for about $73...an absolute steal!

**JPS** · 2nd November 22, 05:26 AM

Here's a nice little brown day sporran that appears to be in nearly stock condition, though I imagine it could use a bit of moisturizing. And it comes with a leather strap, all for around $50, shipped to the US, and even less for those of you in the UK!

Where the seller got the idea this dates to the 1920's I have no idea, but the value is right, anyway.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/7668422...-vintage-brown

**JPS** · 2nd November 22, 05:30 AM

Here's another, a classic design with floral tooling, for around $50, shipped to the US. This one comes with a chain strap and appears to be in excellent condition. New, this might cost you $144 plus shipping from a maker like W.E. Scott and Son.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1335897...r-vintage-plus

**OC Richard** · 3rd November 22, 04:39 AM

Thanks! Very nice finds.

Both of those are classic designs, with the standard gold oval stamp, probably by William E Scott & Son, Edinburgh.

The firm says they were established in 1937.

Scott & Son has made many of the same patterns for this whole time so they're particularly hard to date.

I don't know when they started using that gold oval stamp, if we knew that would help. Many of their sporrans bore the stamps of various retailers of Highland Dress instead of, or in addition to, that stamp. At some recent point they've discontinued the gold oval Made In Scotland Real Leather stamp, and now merely put a sticker on the back, which is hardly satisfactory IMHO.

In any case, the type with a pair of scribe-lines on the flap, narrow braided ropes to the tassels, and old-style stud closure has been called SH in several catalogues old and new. Here are some examples

The type with the space between the scribe-lines filled with a row of little stamps has been called STM.

As you see some have the stud closure and braided ropes of SH above while some have the more modern press-button closure with flat leather straps to the tassels. The latter have the scribe-lines moved further from the edge of the flap.

Also note that the type of stamp varied from maker to maker. WE Scott & Son used a 5-point star/flower thing, some used what appears to be a Tudor rose, some used bullseyes, some used tiny thistles.

**OC Richard** · 3rd November 22, 04:47 AM

Originally Posted by JPS

I wasn't the buyer, unfortunately, but it went for about $73...an absolute steal!

Wow. I was thinking about putting in a bid for around $100 and see what happened. I would have sent it straight to Margaret Morrison for a new, more functional body.

My only concern was that those early-type cantles have an integral back-plate with loops to clip the chain onto. Putting that cantle on a typical modern top-opening body would mean the loops would prevent it from closing all the way.

I do wear a sporran rigged like that and it's not too bad.