Tea strainer is 85% silver. Flask is 80% silver. Match box holder is 85% silver. Tea strainer missing spinning windmill top piece, stamped "HOLLAND" on handle. 

Size (Largest): 3 3/8 x 5 3/4 in. 

Weight: 5.665 ozt. 

#2369 . 

Prior to the 16th Century and the dawn of the Dutch Golden Age, silversmithing was rare in the country, with one of the most prominent originators being Adam van Vianen (1568-1627). In Holland in 1807 a law was passed that abolished all guilds within the boundaries of the country, and also required that all records of former guilds should be destroyed as well. The remaining sources of information about this period consist of ordinances, edicts, and some personal pieces of the members or accounting files, as well as minimal documents kept in the State Archives. Each city had its own silversmithing guild with different rules and regulations, which was done to protect guild secrets, but also led to distrust and the eventual passing of said law. It is known that at least one guild appeared by 1661, thanks to letters preserved by the Mint House of The Hague. In 1745 the Mint asked for lists of all guildsmen in the country, and again in 1768, indicating that by the end of the 18th Century there were large numbers. From the 19th Century onwards all metalsmithing was consolidated and mostly done by individuals and small companies granted specific permission to do so by the Royal Family of the Netherlands.