THE DIRECTORY OF AUSTRALIA SILVERSMITHS
MARKS AND HALLMARKS OF AUSTRALIAN SILVER
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AUSTRALIA SILVERSMITHS - ALPHABETICAL LISTING - D - |
(click on the photo to enlarge image)
SILVERSMITH'S NAME AND MARK |
SILVERSMITH'S INFORMATION |
STEWART DAWSON & CO
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Victoria, Melbourne & Sydney A retail business established in 1869 in London, UK, by David Stewart Dawson. The firm Stewart Dawson & Co was active as jewellers and watch manufacturer at Hatton Garden London, with premises in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. In 1907 the firm was converted to Stewart Dawson & Co Ltd (until c. 1935). Various sterling silver hallmarks were entered in Birmingham, Chester and London Assay Offices |
J.M. DEMPSTER LTD
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New South Wales, Sydney merchant jewellers and silversmiths active at 311 George Street, Sydney |
DENIS BROS.
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Victoria, Melbourne active 1850s/1880s |
DICK Alexander
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New South Wales, Sydney active 1820s/1840s
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DOIG & HORN
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Fremantle, Western Australia partnership of Charles Doig and Charles Horn. Active in 143 High Street, Fremantle, 1916-1929 |
DRUMMOND William
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Victoria, Melbourne founded in 1872 as Brush & MacDonnell Company (partnership of Samuel Brush and William Drummond) in Collins Street. Samuel Brush died in 1878 and the firm was renamed Drummond & Co. Later William Drummond (d.1917) moved the company to Bourke Street. W.J. Sanders acted as supplier of the Drummond retail jewellery business. |
HALLMARKS OF ENGLISH SILVER -
MAKER'S MARK IDENTIFICATION
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BRITISH TOWN MARKS AND DATE LETTERS
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AUSTRALIA AND ITS SILVER - A BRIEF HISTORY
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Australia in the 19th century was made up of six separate
colonies, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia, South Australia
(including, at this time, also the Northern Territories).
In term of working silversmiths only three colonies supported any number of craftsmen, namely South Wales capital,
Sydney, Victoria, capital Melbourne and South Australia capital, Adelaide.
In the first half of the 19th century inhabitants of Australia were few tenths of thousands and pre 1850
Australian silver by comparison to colonial silver in general must be considered very rare.
Most working silversmiths with retail business carried imported silver or plated items as current stock and
locally produced items were manufactured only to fulfill immediate orders (as presentation trophies) when the
waiting time to order pieces from England was too long.
No form of official mark or date letter system was introduced into the hallmarking of Australian silver.
Early Australian silversmiths marked their objects with their full name or initials and imitations of English hallmarks as leopard's heads, lions and anchors.
In 1988 was formed the Gold and Silversmiths Guild of Australia. A voluntary system of marking was introduced (maker's mark, standard mark, guild mark and date letter).
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work in progress on this page - your help, corrections and suggestions will be greatly appreciated -
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