1992.6.98

Collection type

Object

Description

Small ?salt spoon

Long description

Small ?salt spoon made of silver metal, possibly silver plate.

Geographical reference

Malaysia

Asia > South-eastern Asia > Malaysia

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Europe > Northern Europe > United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Cultural groups

Malay

Person

Field collector Frank Mills

PRM source John R. Frank Mills

Date / Period

Date made: Before 1913

Date collected

1893 - 1913 MALAYSIA

Acquisition information

Donated: 1992

Materials and processes

Material Silver Metal

Object numbers

Accession number: 1992.6.98 Other numbers: 11

Research and responses

'Lieutenant-Colonel F. Mills, D.S.O. was born in Liverpool in 1873. In 1893 or 1894 he went to Malaya as a Civil Engineer to develop the railway system. In his spare time he enjoyed big game hunting and polo. He left Malaya in 1913 and returned to England. Obtained a Commission in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and commanded the 6th Battalion in Palestine and at Gallipoli. Received the D.S.O. at the Battle of Gaza. Left the army at the end of the war. Married in 1919, and lived in Wales until his death in 1945.' [MdeA 16/11/2000]

The use of the spoon is not known but it is probably used for condiments such as salt or mustard. There are objects in collection 1992.6. which are probably vessels to contain condiments. See 1992.6.100 - 1992.6.104. It is not known whether the object is of European or Malaysian manufacture but was almost certainly used with other objects in this collection which are of Malaysian manufacture. [MdeA 16/11/2000]

Based on comparison with similar spoons from the Victoria and Albert Museum online database I believe this is likely to be a salt spoon not a mustard spoon. [SM (Verve) 28/01/2015]

Search terms: Food and Drink, Spoon, Food Accessory