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What was this spoon used for?

2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago

I found this in my mom's belongings. Yes, the owner was VERY Scottish.



Comments (22)

  • 2 years ago

    Because you have it next to a sugar bowl lid it makes me think it’s a sugar spoon. But I feel like this might be a trick question 😊 Would you take another pic with this spoon next to an American sized teaspoon & tablespoon - just for reference as to how large this spoon bowl is? It’s an interesting shape.

    rob333 (zone 7b) thanked KW PNW Z8
  • 2 years ago

    Tomorrow. Going to bed very shortly. The container is at least three inches high and maybe an inch and a half across. Doesn't seem like a sugar container!


    My mom was infamous for putting things together that didn't go together. So they may not go together?! I miss my mom, but don't depend on her.


  • 2 years ago

    I have never seen a spoon like that. But it looks a bit scoop like, you could tip it and contents spill out over the front lip easier than regular spoons. Maybe used for measuring in baking. Just a wild guess.

  • 2 years ago

    Sorry Michael, I think your wild guess is way short of the mark :-)


    If that lid is truly an inch and a half across, it’s probably for English mustard, which is very hot and used in small portions. The spoon is probably a mustard spoon.

  • 2 years ago

    That was in the back of my mind colleen, so I a bet that was it. I'm working on campus today (rather than from home), but I'll send over a picture of the rest of the jar later.

  • 2 years ago

    The pieces are not a pair. Sugar spoon is too large for the Jam Jelly/ Mustard Condiment Lid.

  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    That's what I said, mom probably had them mismatched; she would rather have them like she likes them 🥰

    It does not have a handle on it, so it probably is not mustard.



  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    Mustard spoons usually have a teeny-tiny bowl. It looks rather like a spoon for tea leaves - tea caddy - or jam spoon?

    It could be for sugar, of course, and I also saw one shaped like that called a chocolate spoon.

  • 2 years ago

    Why would a mustard pot need a handle? The spoon isn’t too large: the bowl part can’t be 3/4” which would be smaller than a normal sugar spoon, and the handle only an inch and a half long. Does it fit in the mustard pot?

  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    I'm pretty sure it's a sugar spoon.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_spoon

    https://www.flatwareoutlet.com/oneida-louisiana-sugar-spoon.aspx?gclid=CjwKCAjwyY6pBhA9EiwAMzmfwZH7hJYzpclI1gbeoNLrIsgfWf1N94nPB_koqKvfGRadlr8BnbQTchoCQrUQAvD_BwE

    I did find a similar one called a berry spoon, but the silver is gold plated and there is a ribbed edge. How big is the spoon? The berry spoon is 8.5" so more of a serving spoon, I think. Yours looks smaller, like a regular teaspoon.



    Replacements has some which are somewhat similar that they call jam spoons. The jelly spoons I am familiar with usually have more folds/ornate, but I wonder if the jar could be a jam jar?

  • 2 years ago

    If the lid is only 1 1/2” across, that means the handle of the spoon is only about 1 1/2” long an the bowl a little under 3/4”. The shortness of the handle is what makes me think it’s a mustard spoon rather than a sugar spoon, which typically has a longer handle. The size of the pot is also what makes me think it’s a mustard pot, as again typically jam pots are larger.

  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    I didn't see where she posted measurements, but you're right if they are both that small, it wouldn't likely be sugar or jam. Maybe salt? These are small and similarly shaped but are being sold as mustard or salt spoons...3.5"

    https://www.etsy.com/listing/1509695957/antique-master-salt-cellar-spoons?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=mustard+spoon&ref=sr_gallery-1-15&sts=1&organic_search_click=1

    This is a mustard spoon from Replacements but is 5.25"


    most of the mustard spoons are shaped more like this with a much smaller bowl:


    Their salt spoons are much smaller/shorter handled... this one is 2 ⅜"


    This one 3 ¾"



  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    Yes, it is quite small. Not a sugar spoon.


    Every mustard lid I saw had a handle?

  • PRO
  • 2 years ago

    The mustard spoon is often confused with the salt spoon. The bowl of the mustard spoon is always elongated to form a scoop, whereas the bowl of a salt spoon is round and deep and conveys the salt like a ladle (see photo). Another confusion can be made with the generally bigger egg spoons, this style of egg spoon is particularly numerous amongst Irish marked items. Most examples began life as part of a canteen and follow the form of the patterns, but variations on mainly Birmingham marked pieces, such as engraved decoration and variations in form can be found. They date from about 1760, and have tended to become much smaller in size from the late Victorian era.


    Mustard spoons are classed as small items, and were hallmarked in a different manner to larger items during the late 18th and early 19th Centuries - see teaspoon section below for an explanation of the methods employed.


    Bowls of mustard (top) and salt (bottom) spoons



  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    These are described as Sugar Shovel Spoons. 1920's English.



  • 2 years ago

    English shovel style condiment spoon



    British condiment spoon



  • 2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    I agree that it is the same shape as a sugar shovel, but the size of it means that it wouldn’t hold much more than a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, which is pretty useless.

  • 2 years ago

    That container doesn't look like it's 1 1/2 inches across - not if it's 3inches high - it looks wider than that to me...a typo?

    Tbh - it very much reminds me of a fancy marmalade jar my mom had.

    Is the glass liner supposed to fit like that?

  • 2 years ago

    The first time I ever even heard of a "sugar shovel spoon" was when I saw this picture which was posted below.


    Looks to me like it is designed to make it easier to sprinkle the sugar off the end of the spoon. Sugar can dissolve easier into your tea. I have certainly never used one.




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