Old English plate, ecclesiastical, decorative, and domestic : its makers and marks / by Wilfred Joseph Cripps.

  • Wilfred Joseph Cripps
Date:
1899
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Old English plate, ecclesiastical, decorative, and domestic : its makers and marks / by Wilfred Joseph Cripps. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    current, but voluntarily, that is to say, its circulation Avas permitted, without making its acceptance compulsory, nor the offer of it a legal tender. In many other countries besides our own, legislation on this subject has been found necessary or advisable, but as far as English plate is concerned, it is enough to detail tl;e English standards, and even as regards these it will be convenient to reserve for the next chapter such more minute changes as are found to occur now and then in the course of the legal history of the goldsmith’s craft. For the sake of clearness the following table is appended, which Avill give at a glance a comparative view of the fineness of English gold and sihmr money, and gold and silver plate from time to time. Comparative Table of the Standard Fineness op Gold Money and Gold Plate. Gold Money. Carats tine. Gold Plate. Carats fine. 41 Henry III. . 18 Edw. III. to 1 12 Chas. II. 12 Charles 11. . 24 carats (pure gold). Varied from 23 c. 3| gr. to 22 carats, but never lower than the latter, except from 37 Hen. VIII. to 3 Edw. VI., when it was 20 carats. 22 carats, at which it has remained ever since. 28 Edward I. . 17 Edward IV. 18 Elizabeth 38 George III. . 17 & 18 Viet. . (“Touch of Paris ”) 19^ carats. 18 carats. 22 carats. 22 carats and 18 carats. 3 lower standards of 15, 12, and 9 carats i respectively added. j 1 Comparative Table of the Standard Fineness of Silver Money and Silver Plate. Silver Money. Fine. Alloy. Silver Plate. j Fine. Alloy. oz. dwts. oz. dwts. 1 oz. dwts. oz. d\rts. 28 Edward I. . 11 2 — 0 18 28 Edward I. . ' “ As good as sterling.” (being sterling silver.) 8& 9 Will. III. 11 10 — 0 10 34 Henry VIII. 10 0 — 2 0 (New sterling, or “ Bri- 3(5 ditto 0 0 — () 0 tannia” standard.) 37 ditto 4 0 — 8 0 0 George I. . . 11 2 — 0 IS 2 Edward A^I. . (50—6 0 Being the old sterling 4 ditto 3 0 — 9 0 standard restored: (5 ditto 11 1-0 19 this and the above 1 Mary . . . 11 0 — 1 0 new sterling have 2 IHizabeth . . 11 2 —, 0 18 botli been legal stan- P>eing sterling standard dards from 1720 to restored, at which it , the present day. has remained ever ; . since. ' It must be understood that the standard of fineness remained the same from any one date in the above table, until the next entiy occurs.
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