Dutch and Schoonhoven Silver Marks

Delft jewelry typically is a marriage of Schoonhoven silver, often in the form of silver filigree, and blue Delft pottery inserts from the Gouda region. Schoonhoven is a relative small town near Gouda, in the western Netherlands. However, Schoonhoven's fame as 'Silver City' goes back many centuries. The earliest reports about its gold- and silversmiths stem from the 1300's. In 1629 the Schoonhoven artisans receive the formal right to establish a Silver and Gold Guild, but they had probably organized themselves in one way or other long before. The number of gold- and silversmiths at any time varies. According to a study by René Kappers (Zilver-cahier nr 7.2, published 1 Dec. 2008) their number reaches a summit of 130 in the year 1914, and a 20th century record low of 44 in 1965. Today there still exists a Schoonhoven guild that proudly carries the name of "St.Eloy", after Saint Eligius or Eloi, the patron of gold- and silversmiths and other metal workers.

Silver hallmarks and makers marks can be very useful for dating Delft jewelry. Makers marks usually have a limited lifespan that mirrors the active period of the silversmith. Some show small changes over time that reflect family events and changes of management. And, as illustrated below, in 1953 Dutch silver hallmarks have been adjusted to internationally accepted standards, thus creating a clear division of silver items produced before and after that event. The Lion assay marks are normally used for larger articles, while small items are hallmarked with a tiny sword that after 1 September 1953 should carry the number 925 or 835, for sterling and small sterling respectively.

Not all Schoonhoven silversmiths have been active in the production of Delft jewelry. The Verwoerd Ceramics Studio has produced Delft medallions for G.J. van den Bergh Jr. (now G.J. van den Bergh Zilverwerken BV) and G.J. van den Bergh & Son (1941-c.1975). The Van den Berghs may in turn have produced filigree jewelry for others, such as Hooykaas, the Huisman Bros, or the Niekerk Bros, in which case they would normally use the client's hallmark. The Van Katwijk workshop is known to have produced Delft inserts for G.J. van den Bergh Jr., Willem Rond, and M. Wendels-Soeters. Further usual suspects are G.A. van Engelen, H.B. Hol, A. Pluut, the Rous family, the Seton Bros, and G.H. Suur. However, some others have been involved as well. Therefore, and as a tribute to the rich history of Schoonhoven silversmithing, we prefer presenting all makers marks used in and after WW2. This may also help to make our list more useful for a broader group of Schoonhoven silver collectors.

The list below contains over 160 makers marks of both Schoonhoven silversmiths and teachers at the Schoonhoven School for Gold- and Silversmithing. The marks have been purposely recreated for our museum site based on personal observations, public information, and private correspondence. We especially like to thank Herman Duël, managing director of G.J. van den Bergh Zilverwerken B.V. for his helpful comments. Even so, we don't pretend that our list of Schoonhoven post WW2 makers marks is either complete or perfect. If you have any information that could help improving the list, please contact us at the VCO helpdesk.

Please note that the makers marks are listed in alphabetical order of the first regular alphabet character. If you are searching for a particular name on this page, you may want to use Ctrl+F (press the Ctrl key, while you hit F) or use an equivalent short cut on your computer.