I know the mirror will consititute the lion's share of the weight, but I was hoping to get opinions before I tear the sucker apart.

The pieces are hallmarked sterling, so I know there is some value. No, the magnet does not stick to the back. that was the kind of help I was looking for. Still hoping that others with actual experience in salvaging this type of thing will chime in. I do understand that this is hollow ware and that it is not solid Ag ~ more's the pity. I have only torn apart sterling knives myself ~ and got nearly an ounce of silver on each from much smaller handles than have these. But someone who does this type of salvage routinely has made me an offer and I don't want to shortchange myself. At the price I paid, an ounce of silver will constitute a significant profit. If it sticks the only way I would purchase is if it were dirt cheap.Thanks, Cash. You can also use a magnet on the back of the mirror to see if there is an iron based backing between the glass and the sterling. In these cases the metal content was less than 20% of the overall weight. Also some of the dresser sets I have purchased at my store have mirrors where the glass actually fits into the silver in such a way that the sterling backing is very thing actually wrapping around the glass. There is no way for certain to tell how much of the weight is in the glass.

Antique silver hand mirror value