George III c.1785 Sterling Silver Bright Cut Sugar Tongs Hallmarked London

George III sterling silver sugar tongs, with bright cut & wrigglework decoration, wavy wrigglework detail to the spoon backs, and a navette shaped cartouche to the bow, with matrimonial initials engraved H over H S, with the first letter denoting the surname, and the two letters together denoting the Christian names of the wedded couple. Only simplified hallmarks, which have wear especially the duty mark, and consist of the lion passant mark for sterling silver, makers mark B M for Benjamin Mountigue, and the rarer incuse George III duty mark, which was only stamped on articles between 1st Dec 1784 to 29th May 1786. No city mark or date letter, which was intentionally absent by the assay office on low weight silver during this period, but likely assayed in London, circa 1785.