Josef Hoffman

Designed by: Josef Hoffmann, Vienna, 1902

Executed by: Alexander Sturm

Marked: four-leaf clover (company's mark for Alexander Sturm), Austrian hallmark, head of Diana (A for Vienna, 3 for 800/1000), stylised monogram AU

12 large knives, forks, spoons, 12 dessert forks, 12 dessert spoons, 11 dessert knives, 10 coffee spoons, 1 sauce ladle, 1 meat fork, 1 serving spoon, 1 salt spoon, 1 soup ladle

The present design is no. 135 in the Sturm archives bearing the ink inscription “Hoffmann Entwurf” (Hoffmann design). According to the archives only 8 such sets of cutlery were produced, each comprising 170 pieces.

This design by Hoffmann for a set of cutlery is seminal for other very modern cutlery designs by Hoffmann. This holds especially true for the “round model”, produced by the Wiener Werkstätte for many years from 1906 onwards, which reveals numerous parallels to this design, as illustrated by the butter knife and the cheese knife.