The household scales consist - from top to bottom - of an oval bowl, a holder in which the latter lies securely, the actual round display with dial and pointer and three legs. The curved case is decorated with Art Nouveau elements. The scales have the inscription ‘Wirtschafts-Waage’ (business scales) in decorative lettering in the upper part and in the horizontal centre of the dial. In the vertical centre of the dial, ‘D.R.P.’ for Deutsches Reichs Patent can be seen to the left and right of the pointer. Further down is the inscription ‘Guaranteed Accurate’. Just inside the round edge of the dial is a scale - on the outside from 0 to 10 in kilos and slightly smaller and further inside from 0 to 20 in pounds. Unfortunately, there is no indication of the manufacturer or the date of manufacture.

Spring scales determine a weight based on the deformation of a spring inside the scale. The scales weigh up to 10 kilograms with an accuracy of 20 grams. These types of scales were manufactured from around 1880 to around 1930. Between 1880 and 1887, at least 7 patents for economic scales were granted in Germany. For a search in depatisnet (the database of the German Patent and Trade Mark Office), it is important to use the spelling ‘Wirthschaftswaagen’ or ‘Wirthschaftswaage’ in the title field. (Link to Depatisnet see under Weblinks). To find out which of the patents applied for was relevant for this scale, the scale would have to be broken open to examine the relevant technology. It can probably be assumed that it was manufactured during the term of the relevant patent, i.e. in 1915 at the latest. Conversely, due to the spelling ‘Wirtschaftswaage’ and not ‘Wirthschaftswaage’, it must have been manufactured after the spelling reform of 1901.