Basic Spoons and Spoon Etiquette

The Gilded Age in the late 19th C. was a time of great growth in flatware design. Basic spoons for tea and coffee or soup, evolved into a variety of shapes and lengths and styles to satisfy the etiquette for every need, from citrus fruits to sorbets, to eggs, pots-de-crème and chocolate. Above, various sized-chocolate spoons and a long chocolate “muddler,” alongside Limoges pots-de-crème cups with lids and demi-trembleuse cups in saucers for hot chocolate, photographed with a mid-century modern hot chocolate pot.

Tea Spoon

The tea spoon is perhaps the most common place piece existing. Almost every set had these in their basic sizes, whether the bride chose dinner, place, or lunch-sized knives and forks. Over the years the weight of these was slightly adjusted to cut or further increase company profit margins. In 1914, Gorham offered four different weights of silver content for the tea spoon.

Youth or Breakfast Spoon

The next spoon is a smaller, lighter version of a standard tea spoon. It is referred to as a youth or breakfast spoon to match the youth and breakfast knives and forks being marketed by manufacturers.

Five O'Clock Spoon

The small, or five o'clock, tea spoon shown next, was fairly un usual even in the days of afternoon teas, as the regular tea spoon was often used. The size difference was merely a matter of personal preference on the part of the buyer.

Four O'Clock or P.M. Spoon

A smaller version of the five o'clock tea spoon was also made. This is referred to by collectors as a four o'clock tea spoon and is shown next. Many patterns had three sizes of spoons for tea. A regular tea spoon, a small tea spoon, and a four o'clock or P.M. spoon. Calling one size a five o'clock spoon and the other a four o'clock spoon facilitates distinguishing between the two sizes in price lists and when talking over the phone. In much the same way, a large-size round soup spoon is called a gumbo spoon. 

It is very doubtful the Victorians had different spoons depending on whether you drank your tea at four or five o'clock. Victorian etiquette books pay little attention to different types of silverware and their usage, a sure sign that it was not an important screening device. It is therefore hard to know if these different sizes reflect personal preference on the part of the buyer. It should be noted that the normal time for the nursery tea for children was four o'clock. It may be the four o'clock teaspoon is in effect a child's tea spoon. – From “Forgotten Elegance,” 2003

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia