Tin is a white metal and its color is somewhere between silver and aluminum. With age, oxidation with oxygen occurs and this tin oxide has a dull gray tint. Pure tin takes years to become tin oxide. This gray color is called patina. Tin is hardly toxic and is not absorbed by the body. As a result, it can store food and drink for a long time and the taste does not change either.

Shown is a pewter deep oval central dented bowl. It has a dull grayish hue due to oxidation with oxygen. At the bottom it is marked with a shield above which the word étain and the number 90. Inside the shield we see a fleur de lis and a crown and the capital letters “S and E”. Thus, almost certainly from France and presumably from around 1950.

Condition: signs of wear but overall in good condition.