Durgin for Hardy & Hayes Chrysanthemum Sterling Silver Serving Spoon - 5.080 ozt. Beautifully detailed all throughout, even into the bowl, with initials monogrammed into the handle. Marked on the underside near the neck. Hardy & Hayes was a prominent, historic jewelry and fine silver distributor founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1887. Comparable to Tiffany & Co. in its heyday, the company was known for luxury items, fine china, and handcrafted sterling silver. The family business operated until the mid-20th Century, notably employing Joseph A. Hardy III (who later founded 84 Lumber and Nemacolin Resort) before it was eventually sold and downsized. Today their ornate pieces, many originally produced for them by companies like William Durgin and Gorham, are considered highly collectible for their excellent craftsmanship. 

Size: 3 1/2 x 9 1/2 in. 

Weight: 5.080 ozt. 

The William B. Durgin Company (1853-1924) was a noted American sterling silver manufacturer based in Concord, New Hampshire, and one of the largest flatware and hollowware manufacturers in the United States. Founded in 1853 by silversmith William Butler Durgin, the business grew from a small spoon-making shop into a large brick factory complex on School Street. Following the deaths of both Durgin and his son in 1905, the company entered a merger process with the Gorham Manufacturing Company that was finalized in 1924. Its manufacturing operations were eventually relocated from New Hampshire to Providence, Rhode Island, in 1931, with most of its ornate historical designs eventually being phased out during the materials shortages during World War II, but their immense popularity has led them to be sought by collectors for generations since. 

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