Oval Tray of Silver with Looped Heavy Wire Handles

Looped handles of heavy silver wire define this oval tray, the thick wire bent into grips at each end of the form. It dates to the First Design Period of 1931 to 1946.

The heavy-wire handle is an early instance of the wire-work Spratling carried through his career, here scaled up from the thin wrapping of his flatware to a structural element. On an oval tray the looped grips give the plain body its one strong gesture.

Early silver hollowware from the founding decade of the Taxco revival is among the more sought-after parts of Spratling's surviving output.