Beautiful Sterling Silver Tea pot with silver hall mark dated 1886

This hallmark belongs to John Gough, a silversmith from Birmingham, England. It's also noted that marks from William Gough or Gough & Sylvester, also from Birmingham, can be found on silver items from after 1866. The letters "G" and "H" in the mark correspond to the initials of the maker's name. A hallmark is a set of symbols stamped on precious metals like silver to indicate information such as the maker, the town of assay, the year, and the metal's purity. The anchor mark often seen on Birmingham silver signifies that the piece was assayed in the Birmingham Assay Office. The date letter, which changes annually, can be used to determine the year the item was assayed. 

• The lion passant mark specifically indicates that the silver is of sterling quality. 
• Standard/purity mark: Indicates the precious metal content.
• Assay office symbol: Identifies where the test was carried out.
• Marker mark GOU GH.  Likely Gough