Country guide
British silver hallmarks combine several small punches, each with a different job. The system developed from the 1300 requirement to mark silver with a leopard’s head, and it remains a way to read the sponsor, silver standard and testing office together. Georgian and Victorian tableware, boxes and flatware commonly carry a row of these marks; a separate set may appear on a lid or other detachable part.
Sampson Mordan & Co
Undated
Chester hallmark dated 1913.
Chester
& Co into three circles Sampson Mordan & Co , City Road Factory and Warwick Street-Regent Street and Belfast Chambers-Beak Street London showrooms The firm was the heir of Sampson Mordan senior, the inventor and proprietor of the "propelling pencil" patent 1913 hallmark SAMPSON MORDAN & CO - HISTORY AND MARKS
Deykin & Harrison
Undated
This group includes a Birmingham hallmark and a Dublin import mark dated 1911.
Birmingham and Dublin
in three squares.
Thomas Bradbury and Sons
Undated
Captioned hallmark: Sheffield 1911.
Sheffield
over &S into a shield Thomas Bradbury and Sons , 1911 hallmark
Charles Boyton & Son
Undated
Illustrated London 1894 hallmark.
London
into two conjoined circles Charles Boyton & Son , 1894 hallmark
Asprey & Co Ltd
Undated
Illustrated Birmingham 1928 hallmark.
Birmingham
into a shaped rectangle Asprey&Co Limited , 1928 hallmark.... MORE ....
Alexander Henderson
Undated
The entry describes Edinburgh examples dated 1816 with WH and 1823 with JH, not a full mark-use interval.
Edinburgh
WH is tentatively attributed to William Hannay; JH is attributed to John Henderson.
Daniel & Arter
Undated
The illustrated hallmark is dated 1902; the maker's punch was entered in 1882.
Birmingham
Daniel & Arter, Highgate Street, .
Mappin & Webb Ltd
Undated
Birmingham hallmark example dated 1976; a Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee mark is a separate device.
Birmingham
The example date is not a general use interval for the maker stamp.
The sponsor’s initials identify the business that submitted the work for assay. That business can be a manufacturer, retailer or importer. Its punch must be compared by the outline and lettering as well as the initials. Sterling contains 925 parts of silver per thousand; the traditional lion passant denotes sterling, while the Britannia figure denotes the higher 958 standard. Modern hallmarks use numerical fineness alongside the sponsor and assay-office punches.
London’s emblem is a leopard’s head, Birmingham’s an anchor, Sheffield’s a rose and Edinburgh’s a castle. Earlier Sheffield silver carries a crown. A date letter identifies the assay year rather than a designer’s lifetime or the date of a later inscription. Before 1975 each office used its own sequence; from 1999 the date letter became optional. Read the complete combination before assigning a maker or year.
Find the full row on the back, underside or near a rim; inspect lids and detachable parts separately.
Identify the assay-office emblem before looking up a date letter. Use the correct office’s chart for older work.
Record the sponsor’s exact initials, typeface, punctuation and surrounding shield.
Read sterling lion or numerical fineness with the other punches; a lone crown or 925 does not identify an office or maker.
Separate an engraved presentation date from the assay date, and compare any EPNS or plate wording before using a sterling chart.
London, England · Registered 1761; retired 1790.
Domestic silver including flatware, teapots, salvers and sugar tongs.
Birmingham, England; London retail premises · Founded in the 1830s; Elkington & Co name from 1861.
Table silver, hollowware, electroplate and decorative metalwork.
Birmingham, England · First mark registered 1803; family workshop active through the mid-19th century.
Silver vinaigrettes, card cases and boxes, including castle-top designs.
Birmingham, England · Deykin & Harrison 1895–1907; limited company from 1907, active into the late 1930s.
Silver and electroplated tableware; earlier Deykin businesses made buttons.
EPNS, EPBM, A1 and a maker’s own date codes belong to plated wares. Crowns and boxed initials on plate must not be read as a complete sterling hallmark.
A retail address does not determine the assay office. Follow the small office emblem, even when ASPREY LONDON accompanies a Birmingham anchor.
Compare the letter style and punch outline, then the complete assay combination. Shared initials and a familiar animal shape alone cannot name a silversmith.
Undated
Bee flanked by B letters inside a diamond, accompanied by the Period Plate line name.
Undated
The illustrated hallmark is Chester 1909; this is an object's assay date, not the BM mark's full use period.
Undated
Seen on objects dated 1901–1913 (registered Oct 1901).
silver
Electro Works, Howard Street, Sheffield
Undated
Seen on objects dated 1918–1929.
silver
West Street, Sheffield, Hanley Street, Birmingham & Farringdon Road, London
Undated
Seen on objects dated 1910 (registered Mar 1907).
silver
Joseph Ridge trading as John Round & Son Ltd, Tudor Works, Sheffield
Undated
This group includes a Birmingham hallmark and a Dublin import mark dated 1911.
Undated
Seen on objects dated 1919–1966.
silver
Knightsbridge, London was Richard Woodman Burbridge, who was chairman of Harrods (cf RB mark)
Undated
Seen on objects dated 1900–1906.
silver
William Gibson & John Lawrence Langman trading as Mappin Brothers, Queens Works, Sheffield; & retailers at Regent Street, London W and Cheapside, London
Undated
Seen on objects dated (registered Feb 1911).
silver
Manufacturing silversmiths, Birmingham Proprietors: Phineas Harris Levi & Joseph Wolfe Salaman
