Silver Pen Tray
A silver pen tray brings order to a desk, holding writing instruments within easy reach while adding metalwork detail to the desktop.
Silver Pen Tray
A silver pen tray is a desk accessory designed to keep pens and nibs contained on a writing surface. These pieces appear most frequently in Victorian and Edwardian iterations, spanning the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
The format ranges from simple elongated dishes to more complex desk tidies incorporating inkwells and stands. Examples also emerge from the Georgian and George V periods, occasionally featuring decorative motifs such as birds or angel faces.
Makers produced these trays in solid sterling silver, silver plate, Old Sheffield plate, and electroplated nickel silver. Alongside dedicated pen trays, antique snuffer trays occasionally serve the same desk function.
Materials and construction
Silversmiths shaped solid sterling silver through hammering, casting, and piercing, creating raised borders to contain rolling pens. Many items utilise embossing and repoussé techniques to render detailed floral motifs, birds, and cherubs along the rims.
Plated alternatives utilise copper or nickel silver as a base metal before applying a layer of silver or fusing silver sheet onto copper via Old Sheffield plating methods. Some desk accessories incorporate glass inkwells or blue engine-turned enamel details.
Silver Pen Tray Retail Price Guide 2026
Typical asking prices for silver pen tray among the pieces listed under this phrase on Sellingantiques today, from the lower quarter to the upper quarter. They describe what is for sale here now, not the wider market.
Cherub motifs gazing up from the rim of a Victorian desk tray were fondly nicknamed Reynolds angels after the painter Joshua Reynolds.
Distinctions in craftsmanship
Quality rests in the crispness of the chased or embossed decoration and the weight of the metal used. Heavy gauge sterling silver maintains rigid walls and sharp relief, whereas lighter pieces risk bending.
Design complexity also separates standard items from superior works, such as those featuring pierced galleries, figural Reynolds angels, or combined desk tidies with fitted inkstands by known makers.
Walker Knowles·Mappin & Webb·William Comyns·Lutz & Weiss·Liberty's·Harrods
The Silver Pen Tray Glossary
- Sterling silver
- A silver alloy containing 92.5 percent pure silver by mass, with the remainder usually copper. This standard alloy provides the durability required for desk accessories.
- Old Sheffield plate
- An early form of plated metal produced by fusing a sheet of silver to a copper ingot before rolling them together. This technique often reveals a thin line of copper at the cut edges.
- EPNS
- Electroplated nickel silver, denoting a base metal of copper, nickel, and zinc coated with a layer of pure silver via an electrolytic process. It became widespread during the Victorian era for affordable homeware.
- Repoussé
- A metalworking technique where the artisan hammers the metal from the reverse side to form a raised design in relief. On desk trays, this method creates dimensional figures and floral scrolls.
- Snuffer tray
- An elongated tray originally designed for holding candle snuffers, frequently repurposed on desks as a pen tray due to its matching dimensions.
Silver Pen Tray: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a silver pen tray?
A silver pen tray is a small desk accessory designed to hold quill pens, dip pens, or fountain pens. They keep writing implements tidy and prevent them from rolling off the desktop.
Most examples take the form of an elongated, shallow dish with raised edges. Some more elaborate versions incorporate stands for inkwells or drying sand.
How do I date a silver pen tray?
Dating relies heavily upon hallmarks stamped into the metal, which indicate the assay office, the year of manufacture, and the silversmith's mark. Stylistic clues also help narrow the period.
Victorian pieces often display heavy floral embossing or figural angel motifs, while Edwardian examples frequently utilise clean lines or pierced decoration. Georgian trays tend to exhibit simpler, more restrained forms.
What is the difference between sterling and plated trays?
Solid sterling silver pieces consist of hallmarkable high-purity silver throughout the entire object. These items carry maker marks and metal standard marks.
Plated trays use a base metal such as copper, nickel silver, or brass covered with a thin outer layer of silver. Over decades of use, heavy polishing on plated items can reveal the base metal underneath.
How do I clean an antique silver pen tray?
Cleaning requires a soft microfiber cloth and a mild silver polish formulated to lift tarnish without being overly abrasive. Gentle circular motions preserve any fine engraved or embossed details.
Avoid aggressive scrubbing, particularly on silver-plated items where heavy friction can wear through the thin silver layer. Many collectors prefer to leave a degree of dark patination in the recessed areas to accentuate the design.