CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC AIR-TIGHT COFFINS, AS ALSO IN THE MODE OF COVERING, FINISHING, AND ORNAMENTING SUCH LIKE COFFINS
Year: 1857

page_text: ETTERS PATENT to John Loach, Japanner, of Birminghum, in the
County of Warwick, and James Jones Salt, and Burton Day, trading
as co-partners, under the style or firm of Salt and Day, Merchants and
Manufacturers, also of Birmingham as aforesaid, for the Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC AIR-TIGHT COFFINS, AS ALSO IN THE
MODE OF COVERING, FINISHING, AND ORNAMENTING SUCH LIKE COFFINS."
Sealed the 20th October 1857, and dated the 11th July 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Loach, James
Jones Salt, and Burton Day at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 11th July 1857.
We, JOHN LOACH, Japanner, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
and JAMES JONES SALT, and BURTON DAY, trading as co-partners, under the
style or firm of Salt and Day, Merchants and Manufacturers, also of Bir-
mingham as aforesaid, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention
for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC AIR-TIGHT COFFINS, AS ALSO IN THE
MODE OF COVERING, FINISHING, AND ORNAMENTING SUCH LIKE COFFINS," to be as
follows (that is to say):
The object and nature of our Invention is, firstly, in the application to the
manufacture of coffins of the nietal commercially known as zinc or suitable
alloys of zinc; secondly, in the mode of covering such coffins; and, thirdly, in
the furniture for ornamenting, trimming, or finishing the same.

page_text: The first part of our Invention may be carried out in various ways, either
by cutting out and forming the coffins, according to the size and shape required,
of zinc rolled into sheets of any desired thickness, taking care to thoroughly
secure the parts or angles together by soldering, or by so shaping the rolls for
rolling such sheets of zinc that sunken panels may be represented on the
same, such panels being formed according to the shape of the coffin, and
from such sheets of metal we propose to form our coffins by soldering, as
before. And the covers of such collins we also purpose forming of zinc, which
admits of being united to the body of the coffin by soldering, in counter-
distinction to screwing down, as in the ordinary way where wood is used.
Thus we have a non-corrosive or enduring, economic, and perfectly air-
tight coffin, which, in a sanitory point of view, is of the greatest importance,
as individuals dying of malignant fevers or other epidemics can be placed in
these coffins immediately after death, and no evil effects possibly arise though
kept from interment during any indefinite period.
Sometimes we propose to apply a piece or panel of plate glass at the top
end of the covers of such coffins, the same being secured air-tight, which
glass may be covered over and protected by the breast plate when the
interment takes place.
The handles we propose to secure either by tapping and screwing on the
inside or otherwise, as may be best, taking care that the holes for the pins of
such handles are subsequently secured by soldering or otherwise, to make
them air-tight.
And the manner in which we propose to finish such coffins is by painting or
by papering them with paper stained to imitate oak or other woods, or suitable
marbles, or stones, or such paper may be covered with flock to imitate black
or other colored cloths. And in some instances, where expense is not an
object, we purpose covering such coffins with black cloth, in the ordinary way
in which common wood coffins are covered, with the exception, that instead
of nailing the cloth to the coffins, we propose to secure it by glue, paste, or
other suitable adhesive material.
And, lastly, we propose to ornament such coffins with laco and other
ornaments, made in the following way:-We cover suitable paper made
waterproof or otherwise, with thin tin or other metallic foil, uniting the same
to the surface of the paper with suitable adhesive material to insure a perfect
union, which may be done by passing such prepared paper and foil between
rolls or otherwise and from such coated paper we propose to form or make
our lace, handlo plates, breast plates, &c., either by stamping or otherwise, in
the ordinary way. This not only insures great economy with increase of orna-

page_text: mentation, but enables us to apply such furniture to our description of coffins
with great facility, as the under side, being of paper, admits of being applied
where desired, with paste, glue, or other suitable adhesive material.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Loach, James Jones Salt, and Burton Day, in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 9th January, 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
LOACH, Japanner, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, and JAMES'
JONES SALT, and BURTON DAY, trading as co-partners, under the style or firm
of Salt and Day, Merchants and Manufacturers, all of Birmingham as afore-
suid, send greeting.
WHEREAS Пer most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Iler heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said John Loach, and James Jones Salt, and Burton Day, Her special
license that we, the said John Loach, and James Jones Salt, and Burton
Day, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, tho
said John Loach, and James Jones Salt, and Burton Day, our exccutors,
administrators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein
expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC
AIR-TIGHT COFFINS, AS ALSO IN THE MODE OF COVERING, FINISHING, AND ORNA-
MENTING SUCH LIKE COPPINS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said John Loach, and James Jones Salt, and Burton Day, by an instru-
ment in writing under our hands and seals, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent..
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said John Loach, James Jones Salt, and
Burton Day, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say:-

page_text: Our Invention consists in applying to the manufacture of coffins rolled or
sheet zinc, as also in the mode of covering or finishing and ornamenting
metallic coffins; and the manner in which we carry our Invention into effect
will be understood by the following description :-We take common sheet
zinc as sold in the market under that name, as it answers well for our purpose,
such sheet zinc being rolled to the thickness of about No. 12 metal guage (a
size or two more or less) according to the proportions of the coffins we may
require to make, and from such sheet zinc we cut out the bottom, sides, and
ends, also the top or cover the proper shape and proportions, and solder the
sides, bottoms, and ends together, thus forming the body of the coffin, taking
care that the union of tho parts are made thoroughly secure and complete.
Economy of material and a desire for lightness induces us to use the metal
about the thickness before named, but with a view of equalizing the weight of
the corpse over the surface of the zinc bottom, we recommend the use of a false
or inner bottom made of wood, say from a half to one inch in thickness, as
required, and around the top edge of the coffin so formed we sometimes solder or
enclose a suitable round or square wire, on the inside or outside, as preferred;
this strengthening wire will also be found of service for the coffin cover to rest
on, and to be soldered to after the corpse has been placed within it. In the
better kinds of coffins we propose forming a fillet or suitable moulding around
the top or bottom, or both of them, and securing such fillet or moulding by
soldering it to the sides and ends; this addition gives great strength and
regidity to the otherwise thin metal, and keeps the coffins so treated in their
proper form; and as a further means of strengthening or stiffening such coffins, as
well as to impart to them an improved appearance, we sometimes form sunken
or raised panels around the sides and ends, as well also as the top and bottom
or top only, which sunken or raised panels may be formed by stamping,
rolling, or other suitable means, which are common and well understood, and
therefore need not be described. For large and heavy corpses these sunken
panels will be found as useful as ornamental, for they impart strength without
materially increasing the weight. The top part or panel of the cover coming
over the breast and face of the corpse may be removed, and a piece of plate or
sheet glass inserted in its place, secured around with strong cement, putty, or
other suitable material, and which glass plate may be covered over by a
suitable breast plate, soldered or otherwise, before interment.
The ornamenting or external emblazonment of such coffins is entirely
secondary, compared with the desirable and highly sanitary importance of an
enduring and perfectly air-tight coffin; nevertheless, to meet the sympathies
of the living with the dead, the coffins herein described are perhaps moro

page_text: susceptible of a suitable diversification of style of finish and ornament than
coffins made as heretofore of wood; as, for instance, they may be covered
inside and out, or outside only, with suitable paper, such as paper made to
imitate oak or other woods, and further finished by varnishing, &c., or the
metal itself may be painted or stained to imitate wood, marble, or other mate-
rial; or the whole external surface of the zinc may be covered with a suitable
adhesive material, over which flock may be distributed, which would impart
or give to it the appearance as if covered with cloth, or cloth itself may
used, being secured by paste, glue, or other suitable adhesive material.
bc
The handles for such coffins may be applied many ways, without departing
from the great primary object of our Invention, namely, that of render-
ing coffins enduring and perfectly air-tight; but we have found, by holding
or securing the ears, that carry the handles, with solid nuts or bosses
screwed on to the inner ends of the ears on the insido and soldered
around, to answer well; sometimes adding or applying large washers under-
neath the nuts or bosses before named, for the purpose of increasing the
surface, or bearing, or contact, which very much strengthens the part where
the handles are applied.
And our improvements in ornamenting such coffins refer more particu-
larly to the lace, handle plates, shields, &c., which we purpose to apply
to them, and which improvements consist in making or forming the parts
before named from sheets of moderately strong paper or woven fabric
covered with a metallic surface or thin sheet tin, or mixture of tin and
lead, or lead only, or other suitable metals or alloy of metals, such thin
sheets being reduced to the thickness of paper or foil, and united to the
paper or woven fabric before named, by any suitable adhesive material, by
which means we not only effect a great saving of the more expensive material,
but also to produce an article much better suited for our purpose than if such
lace and other parts were made entirely of metal. The practice of using laco
in ornamenting coffins no doubt owes its origin in the necessity of using some
such thing, as a means of covering over the joint and the unsightly screw
heads necessarily used in finally screwing down the cover of ordinary made
coffins, the lace itself being secured to the wood by means of small pins or
nails made for that purpose; whereas the lace and other parts made as herein-
before described may be secured by any adhesive material, the part that laps
over on the cover being left unsecured until after the corpse has been placed
in such coflin, and the cover securely soldered around, when that portion of
the lace which laps over the top may be pasted down, thereby covering the
soldering of the cover. As the paper base forms a good material for absorbing

page_text: ordinary way, while the part marked m is tapped for receiving the screw ",
and o, o, represents a washer in section; and we recommend that after the
screw n is screwed tightly into m, having first been passed through the handle
plate, and the zinc of which the side of the coffin is composed, that the washer
be soldered around its periphery to the side of the coffin, and the screw head
be soldered around to the washer. Figure 8 represents another mode of
securing the handles: the screw and car 9 are formed in one piece; and
represents in section a nut or boss with a screw hole on one side for screwing
over the part p; the rim of this boss can be soldered to the washer when such
are used, and the washer to the side of the coffin, as before described.
Having thrus fully described the nature and object of our Invention, and
the manner in which the same may be carried into effect,. we wish it under-
stood that what we claim as our Invention and wish protected under these our
in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First, the application to the manufacture of metallic coffins of zinc, or
alloys of zinc, as commonly rolled into sheets, and sold in the market as or
under the name of zinc, and which coffins we purpose making air-tight.
Secondly, the manner of covering metallic coffins as herein described.
Thirdly, the application to metallic coffins of glass panels in the tops or
covers of such coffins.
Lastly, we claim the mode herein-before described of making and applying
lace, handle plates, shields, and such like parts to metallic coffins, without any
regard to the design or ornamentation applied thereto.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Loach, James Jones Salt, and
Burton Day, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Eighth day of
January, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-eight.
Witness,
JOHN LOACH.
(L.S.)
JAMES JONES SALT.
(L.s.)
BURTON DAY.
(L.S.)
JAMES S. COCKINGS, Patent Agent,
26, Ann Street, Birmingham.