Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-31
MARKS ON OLD SILVER
THEIR USE IN DETERMINING
AGE AND GENUINENEss.
From Country Life In America.

From Country Life In America.
Every mark on your old silver means
something, and if you care to be sure about
It's age or maker a study of these marks
and the system is essential.
record has been kept at Goldsmiths'
Hall, London, for five centuries of all an
nual date letters and of the registered sill
versmiths and their private marks
In 1887 King Edward III granted char
ter to the Goldsmiths' Guild During the
reign of Edward ~ the Goldsmiths' Com
pany OF London. as 1t came to be known
invented and put into practice an alpha
betical system of marks changing each
year. There We're similar codes in the
provincial assay Offices
Ihts system is of the few beuuests
OF the middle ages which have stood the
test or time practically without change
BY the provisions of this system we have
not only lasting index by which to Judge
the age Of gold and silver, but we have
a guarantee of genuineness.
Neither the date marks nor makers marks
are hall marks. properly speaking, though
all marks on silver are commonly referred
to as hall marks The true hall marks
are the leopard and the lion. The leopard
head was used first, from 1900 and in 1916
lion PEASANT was added. These marks
were punched into the metal with die
field.
Crown and Lion.
Until 1850 a small crown appeared over
the lion; from 1857 to 1850 the puncheon
followed the outline of the lions body;
after that the lion appeared on an oblong
shield, These various forms Of the hall
mark indicate certain broad periods and
are sometimes helpful in determining the
age of piece of silver when the date mark
is indistinct. The date letter or year mark
system seems to have been definitely set
tied about 1913, for although there was
an alphabetical system more than fifty
years before, 1t is customary to go back
10 lolS as an accurate starting point
Charles II raised the standard of the
metal, and in 1895 the new quality was
given new mark--Britannia, sitting in an
oblOng puncheon, with a lions head erased
The standard was found to be too soft for
practical purposes, however and in 1920
there was return to the old, and present
standard of metal, with the leopard's head
and the lion PEASANT. Naturally, these
Britannia pieces are rare.
Makers began to use their private marks
about 1868 AT first they used the first two
letters of the surname; about 1879 the mi
tials were substituted For example. prior
to this date Paul Lamerie's mark was La:
afterward 1t became p. L.
Thus were were four marks on the silver
up to 11S4-leopards head lion, date letter
and makers mark In 1884 the sovereign s
head was added-the governmental customs
matchmaking five punches in all. There
were changes from time to time in the
fixed hall marks which are worth noting.
For example, the leopard's head was set
In puncheon following its outlines until
1878. when 1t began to appear in a SYM
metrical shield of five sides.
In 1896 the head was reduced somewhat
In size. In 1720 the leopard lost his beard
and his shield became oblong. and in 1923
his crown was taken away from him.
These We're all London marks. There
were, In addition, provincial marks The
Edinburgh hall mark dates from 1457. 1t
was triple turreted castel or tower. The
standard mark was a thistle, which was
substituted for the assay masters initials
In 1907. The date letter cycles began in
Edinburgh in 1851.
Glasgow's Emblem.
Glasgow had curious emblem-a tree
with bird in the top. a bell hanging from
one branch and fish across the trunk,
stamped in an oval luncheon. The Shelf
field and Birmingham hall marks were a
crown and an anchor respectively, with the
lion PEASANT as the standard mark
Dublin had crowned harp. Other spe-
cial marks were long used by Chester, New
castle and many Scottish towns. Familiar
ity with these provincial marks will often
prevent confusion in studying old silver
Now to go back to the subject of date
marks. | cannot do more than barely in
dictate what there is in the subject for
those who wish to GO into it seriously Diff
ferent cities halls had different year
marks. 1 will deal only with the London
marks, as being by far the most impor-
tant.
Each year had assigned to it letter Of
the alphabet. which was stamped on every
piece of silver made sold in London that
year. When the alphabet was used up they
went back to A again, taking usually a
slightly different form of letter. These
alphabets stopped at the letter U, so that
each OF these cycles is an even twenty
years in length.
One way of counterfeiting old silver is to
make perfect copy of old piece in
some alloy and give 1t a thick coating of
silver by the modern electroplate process
Such counterfeits are treated skillfully, hall
marks and all being reproduced
On the bottom or inside of the piece NAV
sometimes be found the granulated or crys-
talliZed surfaces left by this process.
though these are usually fooled over IL In
sight Sometimes English hall marks have
been cut from spoon or other small ar
ticle OF great age and transferred to a
larger piece Of more modern make