Victorian Chatelaine Spectacles Case
c. 1900Silver Plated (EPNS) Victorian Spectacles case with a belt slide attached on chain. The case has been over polished and the base metal is now visible.
Modern electroplating was invented by Italian Luigi V Brugnatelli in 1805 but the invention was suppressed for many years due to the fear of confusion between plated silver and sterling silver. Electroplating became commonplace after makers agreed to use hall markings e.g. EPNS (Electro Plated Nickel Silver) / EPBM (Electro Plated Britania Metal) to indicate to composition of the metal and differentiate from sterling silver.
The Electroplating process is where a thin layer of sterling silver is deposited electrolytically on a surface of base metal like nickel or britannium (a pewter alloy).
Details
Details
EPNS
This spectacle case could have been hung from a housekeepers belt with a chatelaine