yes, and NO, No, no. No dishwasher. Please. Yes, use it every day. And don't soak it in the sink with dishes left overnite- please. Every couple of months or more (like before holidays or important dinners) clean it with a paste silver polish, one lovely piece at a time - it will gleam and you will never ever want to go back to stainless, unless it's an old, heavier pattern. IMHO, food tastes better eaten off of silver. Now that I've said that, I'll go back online searching for your pattern, and BTW, it does not date from 1847, that is part of the pattern name. Glad you love it tho'. K