A salver is a flat, heavy tray of silver, other metal or glass used for carrying or serving drinkware, , and dishware at a table, or for the presenting of a letter or Business card by a servant.
Name
The verb
salvar means to preserve from risk, from the
Latin salvare, to save. The term
salva was also applied to the dish or tray on which the food or drink was presented after the tasting process.
There seems no doubt that this Spanish word is the source of the
English language salver; a parallel is found in the origin of the term
credenza, which comes from Italian.
Use as trophies
Ceremonial salvers have also been used as major sporting trophies, most notably a sterling silver salver as the Ladies' Singles trophy in the Wimbledon tennis championships since 1886,
and since 1978, for the runner-up at the Masters golf tournament.
Design
In the United States, salvers underwent a design change during the mid-18th century. Salvers with
scroll-and-shell rims fell out of style during the 1760s and 1770s, replaced with
gadrooned serpentine rims.
