ENGLISH ELECTROPLATE SILVER MARKS AND HALLMARKS OF ENGLISH SILVER PLATE

WITH THE ADDITION OF OTHER BRITISH, SCOTTISH AND IRISH MAKERS

created by Giorgio B. owner of www.silvercollection.it ©

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The two common forms of plated silver are Sheffield plate and silverplate/electroplate.
Sheffield Plate is a cheaper substitute for sterling, produced by fusing sheets of silver to the top and bottom of a sheet of copper or base metal. This 'silver sandwich' was then worked into finished pieces. At first it was only put on one side and later was on top and bottom.
Modern electroplating was invented by Italian chemist Luigi V. Brugnatelli in 1805. Brugnatelli used his colleague Alessandro Volta's invention of five years earlier, the voltaic pile, to facilitate the first electrodeposition. Unfortunately, Brugnatelli's inventions were repressed by the French Academy of Sciences and did not become used in general industry for the following thirty years.
Silver plate or electroplate is formed when a thin layer of pure or sterling silver is deposited electrolytically on the surface of a base metal. By 1839, scientists in Britain and Russia had independently devised metal deposition processes similar to Brugnatelli's for the copper electroplating of printing press plates.
Soon after, John Wright of Birmingham, England, discovered that potassium cyanide was a suitable electrolyte for gold and silver electroplating.
Wright's associates, George Elkington and Henry Elkington were awarded the first patents for electroplating in 1840. These two then founded the electroplating industry in Birmingham England from where it spread around the world.
Common base metals include copper, brass, nickel silver - an alloy of copper, zinc and nickel - and Britannia metal - a tin alloy with 5-10% antimony.
Electroplated materials are often stamped EPNS for electroplated nickel or silver, or EPBM for electroplated Britannia metal.

	WILLIAM HENRY SAMPSON Sheffield Active c. 1880
	SANSOM & DAVENPORT Sheffield Active at 114 Rockingham St, Sheffield (1853-1856) Succeeded to Jph Davenport (manufacturer of silver and electro-plated ware). In 1856 the firm became Sansom & Creswick
	W. SAVAGE & CO Sheffield Active at 52 Pond st, Sheffield (1863-1867)
	ROBERT SCOTT GLASGOW Active at Buchanan Street, Glasgow, c. 1890
	SHAW & FISHER Sheffield James Shaw & Fisher were active at Killham Works Suffolk Rd Sheffield (1830-1894) starting electroplating c. 1849. Succeeded by James Deakin & Sons, Ltd
	SHEFFIELD GOODS SUPPLY CO Sheffield Active at 39 Leadmill Rd, Sheffield (1891-1894)
	JOHN SHERWOOD & SONS Birmingham John Sherwood & Sons of Birmingfham, represented in London by their agents Hall & Russel at 185 Upper Thames Street and Queenhite advertised in 1869 as manufacturers of silver and electroplated goods of every description. George Sherrif Sherwood and William Sherwood, trading as John Sherwood & Sons, spoon and fork manufacturers etc. of Litchfield Street , Birmingham , dissolved their partnership on 18th October 1879. J.Sherwood & Sons are subsequently recorded with William Sherwood, who retired on 31st December 1899, as a partner, together with Wilfred Sherwood (1899-1909) and George Sherwood (1901-1909), at Regent Works, Regent Street, Birmingham and 31 Ely Place, Holborn.
	WILLIAM R.SHIRTCLIFFE & SON Sheffield Active at Rockingham St, Sheffield (1882-1886). Succeeded to William R. Shirtcliffe (1872-1881)
	FREDERICK SIBRAY, J.F. HALL & Co Sheffield 1878-1918 at Fitzwalter Works, 111-115 St. Mary's Rd, Sheffield. Became 'Ltd' in 1897
	ALBERT SKINNER & CO Sheffield 9 Eyre St: 1891-1893 217 Shoreham St.: 1894-1897
	SLACK BROTHERS Sheffield Active c. 1862 at Leicester Works, Sheffield

	SLATER BROTHERS Sheffield Active at 94 Scotland St (1884-1888), Beehive Works, 159-165 Fitzwilliam St (1889-1904), 105 Arundel St. Sheffield (1904-1911). The firm succeeded in 1884 to J.Slater & Son
	SPURRIER & CO London The firm of Arthur Ewell Spurrier is recorded at 35 Coleman Street London in 1883. The showrooms of Spurrier & Co are listed in 1885. In 1890 the firm was active in its works at 14 George Street, Birmingham. A.E. Spurrier was succeeded in the business by John Walter Spurrier active in 1914 as Walter Spurrier & Co.
	WILLIAM SPURRIER & CO Birmingham In an 1858 advertisement William Spurrier is described as manufacturer of "Electro Silver Plate & Britannia Metal, 5 Newhall Street, Birmingham
	EBENEZER STACEY & SONS Sheffield Active since 1857. Ebenezer's firm succeeded to the firm of John Vickers (inventor of Britannia metal). The business was taken over by Hodges Brothers in 1923.
	R. STEVENSON & CO Sheffield Active at 27-29 Carver St, Sheffield (1894-1900)
	HENRY STRAFORD Sheffield Active as William & Henry Stratford at 10 Surrey St (1855-1857) and 1 New Church St (1858-1878). Henry Stratford continued the activity solely at 92 Harwood St, Sheffield (1878-1930). From 1900 the firm became Henry Stratford Ltd
	STURGES, BLADDON & MIDDLETON Birmingham
	WILLIAM SUCKLING Birmingham Founded by Willian Suckling in 1895, the company specialized in a very large range of silver-plated holloware marketed under the trade name KINGSWAY PLATE. The firm went out of business in 1965.

E.P.N.S. (Electroplated Nickel Silver) and EPBM (Electroplated Britannia Metal) are the most common names attributed to silver plate items. But many other names are used for silver plate:
EPWM - Electroplate on White Metal, EPC - Electroplate on Copper, Argentium Argentine Plate, Argentum, Ascetic B. B. S. Ltd, Ashberry, Austrian Silver, Brazilian Silver D&A Trademark of Daniel and Arter, Buxbridge - Trademark name of JT&Co., Electrum, Encore TT&Co Trademark of T. Turner, Exquisite, HH&S , I.XL Geo. Wostenholm & Son, Insignia Plate, JB&S EP A1, JD&S = John Dixon & Sons, K & TL , M&W Mappin and Webb, N.S. New Silver, Nevada Silver D&A Trademark of Daniel and Arter, Norwegian Silver; Trademark of WG&S, Pelican Silver JGNS, Potosi Silver N&S WP, RN&S EP Neill, Silverite = Trademark of W P & Co , Sonora Silver = Trademark of Walker and Hall, Spur Silver = Trademark of E B & Co for Edwin Blyde & Co, Stainless N. S., Stainless Nickel, Stainless Nickel Silver, Venetian Silver - Trademark of Deykin & Sons, WF&SS EP

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