HALLMARKS OF ENGLISH SILVER SILVER MAKER'S MARK IDENTIFICATION

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

WITH THE ADDITION OF SCOTTISH, IRISH, CHANNEL ISLANDS AND COLONIES SILVERMITHS

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BRITISH TOWN MARKS AND DATE LETTERS

London	Birmingham	Dublin	Edimburgh	Sheffield	Chester

	EGP Birmingham 1897 hallmark
	EJH into three circles E J Houlston Birmingham hallmark 1929
	EP and TWY+ (double mark) Edward Power and Edward Twy, Dublin 1831 hallmark
	E.S.B E S Barnsley & Co Ltd -Edward Souter Barnsley-, Birmingham hallmark 1913

	E.V Emil Viner Sheffield 1932 hallmark
	FB Frederick Brasted, London hallmark 1886
	FC Frederick Courthope, London hallmark 1900
	FC Frank Cobb & Co Ltd Sheffield hallmark 1931

	FE into two circles Frederick Elkington, London 1875 hallmark
	FH Francis Higgins II, London 1857 hallmark
	F H into a circle Francis Howard Ltd, Sheffield 1924 hallmark
	F.S over J.H into a shield Sibray, Hall & Co -Frederick Sibray & Job Frank Hall-, London 1889 hallmark

	Fs over Ld Finningan Ltd - Manchester, London 1903 hallmark
	GE & FD Birmingham 1898 hallmark
	GE & S George Edward & Son -possibly-, Glasgow 1871 hallmark
	GA George Adams, London 1877 hallmark
	GDR Glasgow 1913 hallmark
	GEC Birmingham 1910 hallmark

British and English silver hallmarks system is based on a combination of marks that makes possible the identification of the origin and the age of each piece.
The silver assay marks are:

Town mark, corresponding to the mark of the assay office that has verified the piece

Lion's passant guardant or Britannia or lion's head erased certifiying the silver's quality
Maker's mark, identifying the silversmith presenting the piece to the assay office

Date letter, in cycles of twenty letters of the alphabet of different shape identifies the year in which the piece was verified by the assay office

A further mark was introduced in the period 1784 - 1890 in British and English silver hallmarking system:
Sovereign head ('duty mark'), certifying the payment of duty

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