A lovely vintage Zeppelin or "Blimp" cocktail shaker that's comprised of up of 11 pieces. We're dating this piece to the 1960s. We've seen it listed as 1930s, but our research shows it's Mid Century. The maker is James Deakin & Sons of Sheffield England. This shaker has a magical feel to it and is comprised of 11 pieces that "nest" together inside the shaker. When nested together, this piece is heavy in weight, but all components separately are thinner/lighter in terms of the crafting (meaning this isn't a chunky, thick silver-plated metal). The nesting pieces include: 1) the shaker lid 2) the body of the shaker 3) the strainer/cap 4) the removable piece that's hallmarked (that the shaker rests on when lying horizontal 5) the round flask that has a screw cap 6) the small round garnishes canister 7) 4 nesting shot glasses 8) the corkscrew/bottle opener that also serves as a funnel
Maker/era: James Deakin & Sons, Sheffield England, 1960s
A bit about this vintage manufacturer: The firm was established in 1865 by James Deakin at Sidney Works, Matilda Street, Sheffield. Before 1886 he was joined in partnership by his three sons, William Pitchford, John and Albert and the style of the firm was changed to James Deakin & Sons. In 1888 they opened London offices and showrooms at 48 Holborn Viaduct. Other branches were opened at Glasgow and Belfast. In 1897 the firm was converted to James Deakin & Sons Ltd. In 1935, James Deakin & Sons Ltd was part of a short-lived merger "Silver & Steelcrafts Ltd" that included Fenton Bros and J.H. Potter & Sons. The combine collapsed within three years. In 1961 the brand was part of the "MONOGRAM" CUTLERY GROUP belonging to I.S. Dearden & Sons Ltd. manufacturing holloware and flatware under the "Bell brand" in the patterns 'Gordon', 'Balmoral' and 'Empire'. Trade marks used: AZTEC, BELL SILVER, BRISBANE SILVER, PURITAN, REVLIS, SARBON, SHAW & FISHER, SIDNEY SILVER. The figural trade mark (table bell) was used from 1871 to 1936 Hallmarks: JD & S can be found on the clip piece along with a series of other hallmarks (see photo) including the table bell symbol.
Conditions Summary: this piece is in very good vintage condition with minor but noticeable signs of age and wear. We like to be thorough when it comes to our vintage pieces, so here's a full Conditions Summary: 1) No dents or dings. There's general surface wear to the silver-plating including light scratching and general surface wear 2) There's a small imperfection in the cap's edge (it has a small dip in it, purely a manufacturing flaw) 3) There's a small ripple in the silver-plating on the bottom of the garnishes container (where it's slightly rough) that can also be seen from the inside of the container 4) There's some extremely minimal wear to the very bottom of the shaker's bottom interior 5) *Most importantly, this piece leans slightly to the left (see photo x) so it doesn't stand perfectly upright. It will stand on its fins just fine but again leans to the left as as appears one fin is ever so slightly longer (as in by a millimeter). So please NOTE: this shaker LEANS to the left (or right, depending on which direction you have the shaker facing) when vertical and does NOT stand perfectly straight/upright. In short, this rare Zeppelin shaker is in very good vintage condition and shows signs of age/wear and a few manufacturing imperfections (not uncommon on antique barware).
Measurements: Approx 9 1/2" in length
**Please Note: we typically do not test our shakers for leakage. We offer a variety of vintage shakers (both usable as well as collectible/display only). We are happy to put our shaker through a thorough leakage test (which involves filling it with liquid and rigorously shaking it) -- please message us if you'd like us to test this particular shaker. Cheers! **On shipping: We take our packaging very seriously and carefully wrap all pieces to ensure safe delivery. And we're not making a penny on shipping.
**On shipping: We take our packaging very seriously and carefully wrap all pieces to ensure safe delivery.