-40%
Coin Silver Medical Tool Surgical Lithotomy Knife & Scoop American ? Kirk ?
$ 210.67
- Description
- Size Guide
Description
I purchased this decades ago. It came from an auction house without provenance but all the silver with it was owned by members of the George Tiffany and August Belmont families. More information on the families can be found in the description of the large flatware set we have listed by Kirk. I always thought it was a surgical instrument, but I wasn’t sure what kind. I think it is a Lithotomy knife and scoop. If you want to see how I came to decide what it was Google “What is this tool, no marks, but probably American”. This will lead you to a forum I no longer contribute to. The suggestion was made that it was a claret spoon, I will be charitable and not give my opinion of that suggestion. The final posting on page 2 gives a comparison and conclusion. My presumption is that some surgeon related to the Tiffany family had the instrument produced by the Kirk company in the mid 19th century. Of course I can’t prove it. As to the price: silver medical instruments are quite rare, but also I have probably invested 5 times what I am asking doing the research. So I hope it lands in a surgical collection. 9” long, scoop is 1.5 cm wide. 37 grams or 1.19 troy oz.I purchased this decades ago. It came from an auction house without provenance but all the silver with it was owned by members of the George Tiffany and August Belmont families. More information on the families can be found in the description of the large flatware set we have listed by Kirk.
I always thought it was a surgical instrument, but I wasn’t sure what kind. I think it is a Lithotomy knife and scoop. If you want to see how I came to decide what it was Google “What is this tool, no marks, but probably American”. This will lead you to a forum I no longer contribute to. Some of the contributor's suggestions were rather entertaining. The final posting on page 2 gives a comparison and conclusion. My presumption is that some surgeon related to the Tiffany family had the instrument produced by the Kirk company in the mid 19th century. Of course I can’t prove it.
As to the price: silver medical instruments are quite rare, but also I have probably invested 5 times what I am asking doing the research. So I hope it lands in a surgical collection.
9” long, scoop is 1.5 cm wide.
37 grams or 1.19 troy oz.