{"product_id":"antique-english-silverplate-sunlight-jam-spoon","title":"1938 English Silver Port Sunlight Jam Spoon","description":"\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWith a gleaming presence and a provenance rich in history, entrepreneurship, and canny advertising, we are so pleased to offer this charming 1938 English Port Sunlight Silver Jam Spoon.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMade by silversmiths Roberts \u0026amp; Dore to commemorate the golden jubilee of Port Sunlight, the clever shovel-shaped spoon celebrates fifty years since the remarkable village was founded in 1888 by industrialist William Hesketh Lever. Created on the Wirral, across the River Mersey from Liverpool, Port Sunlight was built as a purpose-planned village for workers at the rapidly expanding Lever Brothers soap factory. Named for the company's enormously successful Sunlight Soap, the village embodied Lever's idea of \"prosperity sharing\": rather than simply distributing company profits, he sought to provide workers with decent, affordable housing and an unusually rich array of amenities, all set within a thoughtfully planned and picturesque environment.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFar removed from the regimented rows of housing associated with many 19th-century industrial communities, Port Sunlight was designed with an extraordinary emphasis on architecture, craftsmanship, gardens, and open space. More than 30 architects contributed to its development, creating an eclectic collection of buildings strongly influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement and a variety of historic English architectural styles. Schools, dining halls, a library, hospital, church, recreational facilities, and, eventually, the magnificent Lady Lever Art Gallery joined the workers' cottages amid broad lawns and landscaped gardens. Today, more than 900 of Port Sunlight's buildings are Grade II listed, and the remarkably preserved village remains one of Britain's finest surviving examples of a planned industrial community.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"isSelectedEnd\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCreated for Port Sunlight's 50th anniversary in 1938, this delightful commemorative spoon takes the wonderfully whimsical form of a miniature shovel or spade. Its long, slender handle is decorated with engraved linear details suggesting a wooden tool handle, terminating in an open D-shaped grip. Below, the broad shovel-form bowl is embellished with exuberant scrolling foliage and prominently inscribed \"PORT SUNLIGHT JUBILEE 1888–1938,\" preserving the reason for its creation in gleaming silver.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe playful shovel form seems particularly fitting for a celebration of a village quite literally built from the ground up. Equal parts souvenir, serving piece, and little piece of social history, it would originally have brought a touch of Port Sunlight to the tea table. Put it back to work spooning jam or preserves, pair it with a favorite pot of marmalade, or simply display this wonderfully unusual memento of one of Britain's most fascinating industrial communities.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStrictly one-of-a-kind and subject to prior sale. At time of listing two spoons available. 4 1\/4\"L x 1 1\/8\"W. In very good vintage condition. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eLearn More About The Sunlight Soap Company \u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWilliam Lever 'The King of Sunlight', co-founded Sunlight Soap Company in 1885 with his industrious brother James. The single product focused business evolved into the more prolific Lever Brothers, later becoming UNILEVER, the first modern multi-national company.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBuilding their empire from a humble grocery trade, the brothers made their first fortune through pioneering the sale of attractively packaged laundry soap in small parcels, a grand departure from the large, cumbersome blocks of the time which required cutting to size and wrapping at the point of purchase. Investing in a new type of soap formula which eschewed tallow created from animal fats in favor of glycerin and vegetable oils, they manufactured and marketed what became world's first individually packaged household soap sold in bars. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eQuick to adopt modern business practices and grow with the times, Lever embraced late 19th century American-style advertising techniques to promote their branded soap through promotional consumer campaigns and contests, offering tokens to collect and redeem for prizes. In addition, community-based sponsorship of sporting events and philanthropic efforts spread the reach of the Sunlight brand far and wide. In a truly prescient move, Lever also employed brand ambassadors known as 'District Agents' to engage with the public, touting the the merits of the company's products, as well as serving as undercover agents to report anything observed that could be useful to the home office. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"P.O.S.H.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44025914851441,"sku":"916210","price":125.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0165\/2136\/files\/JamSpoon-1.jpg?v=1786977369","url":"https:\/\/poshchicago.com\/products\/antique-english-silverplate-sunlight-jam-spoon","provider":"P.O.S.H.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}