A SMALL COLLECTION OF ANTIQUE SILVER
AND OBJECTS OF VERTU
THE WHAT IS? SILVER DICTIONARY

MARKS ON SILVER IMPORTED IN THE UK FROM 1867 TO 1998

The Custom Act of 1842 ordered that imported gold and silver couldn't be sold in Great Britain and Ireland unless it had been assayed at a British Office.
In 1867 the Foreign Mark was introduced adding an "F" to the appropriate British hallmark.
Foreign mark on London 1880 hallmark, importer Gustave Guilaudet
Foreign mark on London 1880 hallmark, importer Gustave Guilaudet
Foreign mark on Birmingham 1897 hallmark, importer Ahronsberg Brothers
Foreign mark on Birmingham 1897 hallmark, importer Ahronsberg Brothers
Foreign mark on Chester 1901 hallmark, importer Samuel Boyce Landeck
Foreign mark on Chester 1901 hallmark, importer Samuel Boyce Landeck

Table of Assay Office marks on imported plate: 1904-1998

In 1904 an Act of the Order of Council ordered that foreign silver had to be marked with the decimal value:
.925 for Sterling Standard and .958 for Britannia Standard.
A special Assay Office mark was introduced to be used in the addition to the annual date letter, while the "F" mark was omitted.

ASSAY OFFICE
PERIOD
SILVER IMPORT MARK

LONDON

1904-1906
 Foreign mark on London 1904 hallmark, importer Albert Cohen & Charles Soloman - Cohen & Charles Foreign mark on London 1904 hallmark, importer Albert Cohen & Charles Soloman - Cohen & Charles Foreign mark on London 1905 hallmark, importer George Bedingham

LONDON

1906-1998
 Foreign mark on London 1925 hallmark, importer George Stockwell for Stockwell & Co Ltd

BIRMINGHAM

1904-1998
 Foreign mark on Birmingham 1905 hallmark, importer Gorham Manufacturing Company

CHESTER

1904-1962
 Foreign mark on Chester 1913 hallmark, importer Berthold Muller

DUBLIN

1904-1906
 Foreign mark on Dublin Assay Office, 1904-1906

DUBLIN

1906-1998
 Foreign mark on Dublin Foreign mark on Dublin 1911 hallmark, importer Deykin & Harrison

EDINBURGH

1904-1998
 Foreign mark on Edinburgh Assay Office, 1904-1998

GLASGOW

1904-1906
 Foreign mark on Glasgow Assay Office, 1904-1906

GLASGOW

1906-1964
 Foreign mark on Glasgow Assay Office, 1906-1964 Foreign mark on Glasgow Assay Office, 1923, importer Sylvain Dreyfus

SHEFFIELD

1904-1906
 Foreign mark on Sheffield Assay Office, 1904-1906

SHEFFIELD

1906-1998
 Foreign mark on Sheffield Assay Office, 1995

Since 1972 the UK has been a signatory to the International Convention on Hallmarks. This means that UK Assay Offices can apply the common control mark which will then be recognised by all member countries in the convention. Conversely, convention hallmarks that have been applied in other member countries are recognised in the UK.

Foreign Assay Office marks
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