A signature you can trust to identify, but a value that depends on what sits next to it. We read the maker's mark, the assay marks and the date letter, confirm whether a piece is sterling or electroplate, and value the object and its metal separately.
Mappin & Webb made both fine sterling and quality plate, and the two are worth very different things. We tell you which you have and why — and offer the higher of the object's collectable worth or its recoverable silver. Free insured postage. Written valuation. Paid in 72 hours.
Fair Vintage is an independent buyer of second-hand and antique silver. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an authorised representative of Mappin & Webb. We identify and buy pieces bearing their marks on the open market.
Mappin & Webb is one of the great English silver names. The business traces to a Sheffield workshop founded by Jonathan Mappin in 1775, and took its familiar form in the 1860s when George Webb joined the London firm. It has held a Royal Warrant since 1897, and in 1963 was grouped with Elkington, Walker & Hall and Adie Brothers into British Silverware Limited. That long history matters when you sell, because it means a Mappin & Webb mark can appear on anything from a Victorian sterling salver to a mid-century electroplated entrée dish — pieces that are worth very different amounts.
So the name alone does not set a value. It tells us who made or retailed the piece; the hallmark struck beside it tells us the metal, the assay office and the year. Read together, the marks let us date the piece, confirm the standard, and grade it — and that is where the figure comes from.
We buy Mappin & Webb silver of every kind and period, sterling or plate, single pieces or full services:
If your Mappin & Webb piece is part of a broader collection of household silver, our sell silver and silver plate hub explains how hallmarks, makers and metal standard drive value across everything from cutlery to candlesticks. For a service specifically, see sell silver tea sets.
Identifying a Mappin & Webb piece and dating it comes down to four marks, usually grouped on the base or underside. On genuine sterling they appear together; on electroplate you will see the maker's name and a plate description but no lion.
The full name or initials, sometimes with a Sheffield or London address, or a shop signature where the piece was retailed. This confirms the maker — not the metal.
A walking lion is the sterling standard mark for England — 92.5% silver. If it is present, the piece is sterling and valued on its silver. If it is absent, check for plate marks.
A crown (historically Sheffield), a leopard's head (London) or another office symbol tells us where the piece was assayed — useful for confirming a Sheffield-made origin.
A single letter in a shaped shield encodes the assay year. It lets us date the piece precisely, which helps separate an early sterling example from a later one.
On plated pieces you will instead see the name accompanied by wording or initials such as EP, EPNS or a trade description, with no lion passant. That single absence is the clearest signal that a piece is electroplate rather than sterling — and it changes the basis of the valuation entirely.
Mappin & Webb built its reputation on both fine sterling silver and high-quality electroplate, and to the eye a good plated tea service can look every bit as handsome as a sterling one. But they are valued on completely different principles, so establishing the standard is the first thing we do.
Sterling is valued on a floor of recoverable metal, plus any premium the object earns:
Weight (grams) × 0.925 × current silver price per gram = metal floor
We weigh each piece to 0.01g, confirm sterling by the hallmark and by non-invasive testing, and reference the live silver price on the day. On top of that floor we look at whether the object — a fine salver, a crisp Victorian service, a good pair of candelabra — should be worth more as a collectable than as metal. Electroplate carries only a microscopic layer of silver over a base metal, so it has no meaningful melt value; a quality Mappin & Webb plated piece is valued for its design, maker and condition as a usable object, not for its silver.
A common and costly mistake is to treat any heavy Mappin & Webb piece as if the whole weight were silver. Electroplate is base metal with a thin silver skin, so that sum wildly overstates it. The same trap catches loaded sterling candlesticks, where a filled base means gross weight is not recoverable silver. We separate metal from object on every piece so the figure is honest either way.
Where a piece is sterling and worth considering above melt, its value as an object turns on quality and condition. Mappin & Webb sterling is generally well made — good gauge, clean construction, crisp engraving — and that quality is part of what a collector pays for. We assess:
Please do not polish hard or attempt to remove engraving before sending — over-cleaning softens detail and buffing out a monogram does more harm than the mark itself. We assess every piece exactly as it arrives and set out the reasoning in your written valuation. If you would like a considered figure before deciding, request a free silver valuation.
Tell us roughly what you have — "a Mappin & Webb tea service" or "a presentation trophy" is enough. We email a free prepaid, tracked and insured label the same working day.
Wrap each piece in tissue and bubble wrap — avoid newspaper, which can mark silver. Pack in a sturdy box. Your parcel is insured to £5,000 from the moment the courier scans it.
We email a unique parcel code and your opening time. Your parcel is opened on camera and photographed before a specialist reads the marks.
Marks read, sterling confirmed, object and metal valued separately. Accept what you want to sell — return the rest free. Payment within 72 hours of the opening, or we add 3%.
If your question isn't here, call us on 01234 815116 or email support@fairvintage.co.uk. We respond within one working day.
Get your free label →Look for the maker's mark — the initials or full "Mappin & Webb" name — struck on the base or underside, usually alongside a full British hallmark on sterling pieces. Retailed pieces may also carry a shop signature or a Sheffield or London address. The presence of the name confirms who made or retailed the piece, but the metal standard is set by the hallmark next to it, not by the name alone. If you are unsure, email a clear photo of the marks and we will read them for you at no cost.
Mappin & Webb produced both. Sterling pieces carry a full hallmark including the lion passant, an assay office mark and a date letter. Electroplate carries the maker's name with marks such as EP, EPNS or a trade description but no lion passant. Sterling is valued on its silver weight plus any premium; electroplate holds only a thin layer of silver and is valued as a quality decorative object. We confirm which you have by reading the hallmark and by non-invasive testing before we value it.
A sterling piece is valued on the higher of two figures: its recoverable metal (weight in grams multiplied by 0.925 and by the live silver price) or its worth as a collectable object. Well-made Mappin & Webb sterling — tea services, salvers, candelabra and trophies in good original condition — can carry a premium above melt for the quality and the name. Electroplate is valued for its design and condition rather than its metal. We weigh, read the marks, and quote whichever basis is higher, explained in your written valuation.
Not necessarily. A great deal of Mappin & Webb silver was made as presentation ware and sporting trophies, so period engraving is normal and often part of the interest. What can reduce value is a later erasure — where an inscription has been ground away, leaving the silver thin or dished. Please do not attempt to remove engraving before sending. We assess the piece as it is and tell you plainly how, if at all, the engraving affects the figure.
No. The original fitted case, retailer's box or certificate is a nice-to-have that can add a little to a collectable piece, but it is never required. Send the silver on its own if that is all you have. If you do still have the case, cutlery canteen or presentation box, include it — for a matched service or a cased set it can help the piece present as complete.
Request your free label today. Maker's marks and date letters read, sterling confirmed by hallmark, object and metal value assessed separately. Written valuation. Paid within 72 hours — or we add 3%.
Also see: Sell silver tea sets · Sell silver & silver plate