The Silver Cabinet has dated this piece to the 18th Century.
Their use was two-fold: the slots in the bowl were used to skim tea leaves and dust from the cup once the tea had been poured, and the pointed end was used to unblock the tea pot spout, which filled with tea leaves. In the 19th century they were renamed 'mote spoons' or 'mote skimmers'.

This particular example has the classic rat-tail handle and is free from engravings. It is 13cm in length and weighs 7g.
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The Silver Cabinet has dated this piece to the 18th Century.
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