wężyk probierczy

English translation: wriggled assay groove / (assay sample) wriggle-mark

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Polish term or phrase:wężyk probierczy
English translation:wriggled assay groove / (assay sample) wriggle-mark
Entered by: Robin Gill

16:13 Mar 31, 2021
Polish to English translations [PRO]
Materials (Plastics, Ceramics, etc.) / Silver hallmarks
Polish term or phrase: wężyk probierczy
From a museum catalogue:
Sorry, I have no more context than this. It's the wavy line visible in the image

Podróżny przybór do pisania
1670–1674, Augsburg
Hans III Petrus (Peters; czynny w 1621-1677)
Srebro kute, odlewane, wycinane, cyzelowane, aksamit; pudełko: 3,8 × 7,3 × 6,7 cm
Cechowane: znak miejski Augsburga, znak wykonawcy, wężyk probierczy; na dnie

Robin Gill
Poland
Local time: 11:33
wriggled assay groove / (assay sample) wriggle-mark
Explanation:
(in silverwork)
a furrow left in a piece by the digging out of metal for assay - https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/assa...

--

Small gouge under a piece of silver, made when a sample was removed for assaying. - https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20...

--

In America the mutilating test cut (where metal is removed) is also called a knife cut, in both Britain and the continent, a chisel cut. Cuts in silver objects, usually near the hallmarks were once called assay groove in previous centuries. - https://www.coinbooks.org/v22/esylum_v22n11a15.html

---

Canongate silver with any sign of an assay-groove or gauge-mark.

--

Silver, cast, embossed, chased, fire-gilt
Master maker’s mark (Seling 2007, No. 1043) and town mark (Seling 2007, No. 1043) on the foot-ring, wriggled assay groove on the edge of the cover Engraved on the cover: ‘XV’ - https://www.kunstkammer.com/index.php/en/2413-silberbirnpoka...

--

... but the characteristic wriggled assay - groove is here present , although there is no assay - master's punch - https://t.ly/meyv

--

Marks: On the narrow vertical foot-rim at the rear of the rococo pedestal base three marks are punched, alongside an assay sample 'wriggle-mark' - https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_WB-117

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Continental silver gilt christening set, comprising a spoon with oval bowl with figurative, twisted stem and terminal in the form of a crowned figure, with matching fork, in a fitted case, underside of both spoon and fork with wriggle mark and stamped - W. B. T. - https://t.ly/Cfud
Selected response from:

geopiet
Grading comment
Thank you very much indeed. Sterling reference work.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4zig-zag assay scrape
Andrzej Mierzejewski
3wriggled assay groove / (assay sample) wriggle-mark
geopiet
Summary of reference entries provided
wèżyk
geopiet
"zig-zag assay scrape"
Andrzej Mierzejewski

Discussion entries: 3





  

Answers


4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
zig-zag assay scrape


Explanation:
Based on the reference below.
Another wording may be known to professionals, that's why confidence 4/5.

Andrzej Mierzejewski
Poland
Local time: 11:33
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Polish
PRO pts in category: 26
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

1 day 7 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
wriggled assay groove / (assay sample) wriggle-mark


Explanation:
(in silverwork)
a furrow left in a piece by the digging out of metal for assay - https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/assa...

--

Small gouge under a piece of silver, made when a sample was removed for assaying. - https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20...

--

In America the mutilating test cut (where metal is removed) is also called a knife cut, in both Britain and the continent, a chisel cut. Cuts in silver objects, usually near the hallmarks were once called assay groove in previous centuries. - https://www.coinbooks.org/v22/esylum_v22n11a15.html

---

Canongate silver with any sign of an assay-groove or gauge-mark.

--

Silver, cast, embossed, chased, fire-gilt
Master maker’s mark (Seling 2007, No. 1043) and town mark (Seling 2007, No. 1043) on the foot-ring, wriggled assay groove on the edge of the cover Engraved on the cover: ‘XV’ - https://www.kunstkammer.com/index.php/en/2413-silberbirnpoka...

--

... but the characteristic wriggled assay - groove is here present , although there is no assay - master's punch - https://t.ly/meyv

--

Marks: On the narrow vertical foot-rim at the rear of the rococo pedestal base three marks are punched, alongside an assay sample 'wriggle-mark' - https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_WB-117

--

Continental silver gilt christening set, comprising a spoon with oval bowl with figurative, twisted stem and terminal in the form of a crowned figure, with matching fork, in a fitted case, underside of both spoon and fork with wriggle mark and stamped - W. B. T. - https://t.ly/Cfud

geopiet
Native speaker of: Native in PolishPolish
PRO pts in category: 80
Grading comment
Thank you very much indeed. Sterling reference work.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)




Reference comments


10 mins
Reference: wèżyk

Reference information:
Kiedy mowa o próbowaniu srebra, godzi się wspomnieć często spotykany na dawnych wyrobach tzw. wężyk probierczy. Ta zygzaowato ryta linia długości paru centymetrów towarzyszy zazwyczaj znakom probierczym. Jest to ślad pobrania dłutkiem niewielkiego wióra będącego próbką metalu dla oznaczenia metodą ogniową ilości srebra w stopie, słowem jest to ślad działalności probierza. Próba ogniowa była w dawnych czasach najprecyzyjniejszą metodą probierczą. W XIX w. oznaczano tak dokładnie zawartość srebra metodą narysu, że nie istniała konieczność pobierania próbek i wężyk probierczy nie pojawia się już na ówczesnych wyrobach

geopiet
Native speaker of: Native in PolishPolish
PRO pts in category: 80
Note to reference poster
Asker: Dziękuję bardzo.

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4 hrs
Reference: "zig-zag assay scrape"

Reference information:
One German site:
https://silbersuite.de/augsburger-silbermarken-beschauzeiche... - several photos showing the same mark on several items. Find "tremulierstrich" as in:

Der Geschaumeister überprüfte den vorgeschriebenen Silberfeingehalt mittels einer Silberprobe - dem Tremulierstrich - und schlug dann die Stadtmarke als Zeichen der Garantie für den Silberfeingehalt ein.

And one British site:
https://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18970
in particular:
Is there an English equililent for the German Tremulierstrich, which ich jagged mark put on antique silver. It is apparently a mark which guarantees that the silver was tested twice.
It is a rather unsightly and long jagged mark and I wonder why they couldn't come up with a more elegant one.

The final reply:
I have always known this as an "assay scrape". If I wanted to be more descriptive I would expand this to "zig-zag assay scrape".



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at   4 godz. (2021-03-31 20:40:38 GMT)
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Well, maybe not British, but Canadian or U.S., I can't be sure. The UTC -4:00 time zone is valid for a small parts of Canada and the US. See
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Standard...

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Note added at   18 godz. (2021-04-01 10:41:44 GMT)
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Jeszcze jeden link:
"The spoon is definitely silver because of the ‘zig-zag’ mark which is called and Assay scrape which was done to remove metal from the spoon to determine the quality of the silver."
[...]
"the zig zag is not a guanrantee for silver. It is assayers test for silver - yes. But not a gurantee mark."
https://www.silver-collector.com/t/identify-hallmarks/8820/3

Andrzej Mierzejewski
Poland
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Polish
PRO pts in category: 26
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