It is not necessary, to trace the antiquity of the spoon, to revert to Roman days, to enumerate what has been found in Saxon graves, or to wander through the mediæval period to show the use and development of the spoon. It is sufficient, in the present volume, to take spoons as found in the realm of collecting. Practically this may be said to begin at the reign of Elizabeth, though in 1903 a set of thirteen apostle spoons was sold at Christie’s, of the reign of Henry VIII and having the London hall-mark for 1536, for £4,900. But this is sensational. There is no doubt that the most popular spoon of the Tudor period, that is including the reigns of Henry VII (1485-1509), Henry VIII (1509-47), Edward VI (1547-53), Mary (1553-58), and Elizabeth (1558-1603), was the well-known apostle spoon. It is rare to find any examples before 1500. The oldest known is dated 1493. They were called apostle spoons because each spoon was surmounted with a figure of one of the apostles with his customary emblems, such as St. Peter with the key, St. John with the cup of sorrow, etc. They were thirteen in number to make a complete set--that is, the twelve apostles and the Master spoon, bearing an image of Jesus Christ, although the thirteenth in some cases was St. Paul. The study of apostle spoons does not begin or end with English silver. They originated on the Continent, and the goldsmiths of Nuremburg and of Paris, of Milan and of Madrid, fashioned them in like form, each according to the traditions and technique of his school. [Illustration: SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY SPOONS. SLIPPED IN THE STALK. 1651. PURITAN. _c._ 1660 (Norwich). CHARLES II FLAT STEM. 1665. Showing changing form of bowl and handle. (_At Victoria and Albert Museum._)] It was apparently the custom in Tudor days to offer a set of these spoons, or, if the donor were less rich, a fewer number, as a christening gift. Sometimes only four were given, representing the four evangelists. In modern days the gift of a christening spoon still continues, though the spoon is shorn of its former apostle head. There are many passages in the old English authors referring to this custom, and numerous references in old wills bequeathing sets of these apostle spoons as heirlooms. In Shakespeare’s _Henry VIII_, v. 2, Cranmer, who declares his unworthiness to act as sponsor--is met with the rebuke from the King: “Come, come, my lord, you’d spare your spoons.” It is interesting to note the emblems usually found associated with the different apostles. The following list will enable the collector to identify the one from the other:-- St. Peter--with a key or a fish. St. Thomas--a carpenter’s square or a spear. St. Andrew--a transverse or saltire cross, on which he suffered martyrdom. St. John--a cup with a winged serpent. St. Philip--a cross of varying form, usually on a long staff. St. Bartholomew--a large knife, because he was flayed in his martyrdom.