Sterling Silver Wine Coasters — antique Georgian pieces and modern alternatives, including Welsh slate bases.
Coasters
Wine and decanter coasters became genuinely popular at the end of the eighteenth century, once decanting wine rather than serving straight from the bottle came into fashion — part of a wider boom in wine and port accessories that also included decanting funnels, decanter labels, and wine coolers. Genuine Georgian examples are relatively rare and high value, partly a result of a wine-investment boom in the late 1980s that pushed prices up. That same period also drove a rise in well-made, well-priced modern alternatives, which we stock alongside the antique pieces — including a line sized for modern bottles, and pairs with Welsh slate bases as an alternative to the traditional wood.
At a Glance
Popularised in the late 18th century, alongside decanting wine
Genuine Georgian examples are rare and high value
Prices partly shaped by a late-1980s wine-investment boom
Modern coasters sized to suit today’s bottles
Welsh slate base pairs available as an alternative to wood
Style & Maker History
Coasters emerged alongside a broader material culture around wine and drinking that developed at the end of the eighteenth century — decanting funnels, decanter labels, and wine coolers all became genuinely fashionable accessories around the same time, once decanting wine from the bottle became the done thing.
Buyer's Guide
If you’re after a genuine Georgian coaster, expect to pay accordingly — they’re relatively rare, and prices reflect a wine-investment boom from the late 1980s as much as age alone. A modern coaster is the better choice if you want something sized reliably for today’s bottles rather than an antique one, and worth considering a slate-based pair if you’d like something other than the traditional wood.
A few things to know
Any item which is guaranteed to be over 100 years old.
Sterling Silver is guaranteed by the UK Hallmarking Act. Each piece is independently verified and assayed for the purity of silver content.
Yes, all of the items shown on our website are available to view at our showroom in The London Silver Vaults.
Looking after your silverware is a simple process. We have put together a guide at https://johnsurtees.co.uk/knowledge/how-to-clean-silver-care-guide/