an all-steel glove button hook in the form of a stork. It is stamped Made in Germany with design registration number 153242 dating it to 1890

Item reference: 4061
Dimensions: 4 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Price: £28 GB
Status: Sold

a gilt brass glove button hook with ruby glass ball simulating the crown at the coronation of King Edward & Alexandra in 1902

Item reference: 4058
Dimensions: 4 and 1/2 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Price: £28 GB
Status: Sold

a double sided silver handled bear by Crisford & Norris, established in 1896 at 118 Vyse Street, Birmingham. It is hallmarked for Birmingham 1909

Item reference: 4024
Dimensions: 8 inches overall
Condition: the nose of the bear is rubbed through on both sides
Sale Price: £38 GB £25 with free UK shipping
Status: Sold

a silver handled figural button hook in the form of a sleeping heron  by Adie & Lovekin, established in 1879 at 23 Frederick Street, Birmingham. It is hallmarked for Birmingham 1906

Item reference: 4039
Dimensions: 7 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Sale Price: £75 GB 48 + Free UK Shipping
Status: Sold

a Victorian silver handled buttonhook in the form of a panther with gem stone eyes. The maker is known to be Adie & Lovekin established in 1879 at 23 Frederick Street, Birmingham. The assay mark shows only the Lion passant on the panthers protruding tongue denoting STERLING silver but the BHS has records of the full hallmark from 1879 to 1901.

Item reference: 4023
Dimensions: 6 and 3/4 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Sale Price: £55 GB 35
Status: Sold

an Edwardian figural silver handled bear buttonhook from unknown maker. The makers mark is difficult to read on the textured background but the date letter is “M” and almost certainly Birmingham assay.

He looks very smart with his bow tie, reminiscent of Paddington Bear but produced well before the popular characters time

Item reference: 4065
Dimensions: 7 and 1/2 inches overall
Condition: perfect antique original
Price: £80 GB
Status: Sold

A rare Victorian silver handled BOOT buttonhook by unknown maker with a London Assay mark circa 1865. There is a rubbed makers mark which looks to be SC or possibly SO but this has not been identified in the Buttonhook Society publication British & North American Silversmith’ Marks.

The story as portrayed on the handle is St George & the Dragon, St George is on the front of the handle having already slain the dragon which wraps around the handle onto the lower back where one can clearly see the forked tail.  The dragons head is just below St Georges lower arm. In the Middle Ages the dragon was commonly used to represent the Devil.

The handle is  a solid STERLING silver casting giving the buttonhook a nice weighty feel. A solid casting is unusual but sometimes used to produce a small quantity of a particular design. This might explain why the character has not previously been recorded.

Item reference: 4031
Dimensions: 11 inches overall
Condition: good antique original & like many boot hooks the handle is very weighty cast solid silver
Sale Price: £150 GB £99 with FREE UK SHIPPING
Status: Sold

Nevada “silver” buttonhooks are always defined by the dull grey look of the silver which is invariably engraved with a design on the handle and/or shaft and have Abalone shell or Mother of Pearl inset into the handle.

Western penitentiaries started  arts & crafts programmes for inmates and a popular prison made item were spurs. From the turn of the century to 1930’s many fine spurs were produced at the Colorado State Prison, also at Arizona State Prison,  Utah State prison and Washington State prison at Walla Walla. The marriage of steel with overlays of silver in a naive decoration is common to both spurs & buttonhooks but the shell inlay is only used on buttonhooks. Nevada silver probably gets it’s name from the silver ore found in the State of Nevada. The silver ore is formed strictly on the surface. Over millions of years of desert conditions,  silver sulphide minerals weathered out of their volcanic rocks, turned gradually under the influence of rainwater to silver chloride. The climate of Nevada concentrated this silver ore and these heavy grey crusts were polished by dust & wind to a dull lustre.

This white metal buttonhook with twisted one-piece construction inset with Mother of Pearl shell is typical of Nevada buttonhooks.

Item reference: 4066
Dimensions: 6 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Price: £36 GB
Status: Sold

a very unusual Victorian all-silver pair of “scissors” by the well known maker Hilliard & Thomason, established in 1847 at 1/2 Spencer Street, Birmingham. The company was known for engraved silver items and this pair of “scissors” with buttonhook is in an all-silver construction. The hallmark H & T was assayed Birmingham in 1890.

Was it made as a dual-purpose item, you could certainly use the buttonhook but the scissors are deliberately not sharp?

Item reference: 4063
Dimensions: 6 inches overall
Condition: the scissor action is a little loose, otherwise good antique original
Price: £45 GB
Status: Sold

a silver handle figural bear by Adie & Lovekin, established in 1879 at 23 Frederick Street, Birmingham . The makers mark is ALLd and assayed  Birmingham in 1909. This is yet another version of the popular “baby” bear with a different handle design

Item reference: 4064
Dimensions: 7 inches overall
Condition: good antique original
Price: £60 GB
Status: Sold