Old English Pewter.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 25, 22 June 1907, Page 53

Old English Pewter.

(By

H. W. Lewer.

So greatly was pewter in request during Charles ll.’s time, that Pepys makes mention in his famous diary of purchasing a cistern of pewter in 1667. Immense quantities of pewter were made during the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, but the days of the craft

were numbered, and the last record — the “touch,” as the hall-mark is called —of the Pewterers’ Company is dated 1824. Long prior to this the restrictions and regulations had fallen in abeyance, the quality of pewter had deteriorated, and the introduction and adoption of newer materials gave pewter its coup de grace.

According to some authorities, pewter should contain no lead. With this we disagree—it should contain a large percentage of tin, and a little lead. Pewter, roughly stated, is an alloy of tin and lead, the greater proportion being

tin; brass, antimony, copper, and zinc at times being introduced. The Roman pewter contained a very high percentage of tin. In the fourteenth century the so-called “fine pewter” was composed of tin and as much brass as the tin would take up. Pewter which contains a large percentage of lead is of a dark tint, and is, of course, ductile.

There are several tests for ascertaining pewter, and to the average collector who is not of an analytical tempera-

ment, one of the most common and easiest of application is to draw a knife sharply across the plate, dish, or vessel, and it should give a sharp, metallic sound. Bad pewter is almost silent under the test.

As regards the making of pewter, it was shaped by hammering, casting, and finished by hand, or burnished on a lathe. Such pieces as flagons, measures, porringers, salt-cellars, etc., were cast, the handles being moulded separately and soldered on to the vessel. Large dishes were hammered into shape, the smaller plates being generally moulded.

Spoons were cast in moulds of gun metal or brass, made of two closely fitting, but detachable, halves, the sur face of the mould being powdered to prevent adhesion.

The ornamentation of pewter is a vexed question. To most collectors, an unadorned piece is preferred, and also, it may be added, is a small sign of its genuineness. As most of it was made for daily use, pewter was generally without ornament. However, pieces were ornamented in relief work, in line, by moulding, by pattern, or by a series of small dots called a bead ornament. Pewter was also used to inlay wood, and this

art has again been revived during the last few years. To identify and establish the age of a piece of pewter is a difficult subject, but every article bears upon its face an approximate date, which comes to the collector with a growing knowledge of his subject. It is by learning that we are taught, and a visit to a museum or

an examination of a well-known amateur collection will assist in enabling him to distinguish and date the examples in his own collection. As regards the marks, or “touches,” they are not always reliable, being often forged, and. in addition, many pieces have no marks, or, if marked, the “touches” are those of which no record has been traced. The Pewterers’ Company have a list of "touch-plates” which go back to the early- years of the seventeenth century, but many a collector knows the inadequacy of it, and has looked and looked in vain for the “touches” on the English pewter in his possession.

The age of pewter can often be ascertained by its shape and characteristics. Plates ana dishes of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries generally’ have a wide rim. It was during the early seventeenth century that dishes and platters were beginning to bo made deep, like basins. Early eighteenth-century plates and dishes had a moulded or

beaded rim, and flagons were straight, or lines slightly curved; later, these gave place to a curved, or rococo form.

The handle of a vessel attached directly to it is earlier than one with an intervening strut: tailed-pattern spoons from 7 to 8 inches long date from the seventeenth century. Apostle spoons ean be ascribed not earlier than the 16th century. Most of the tankards, measures, and jugs that are seen in collections to-day in private houses may be classed eighteenth century. Large mustard and pepper pots are late seventeenth or early eighteenth century; later, they became smaller in size. Tea and coffee pots with curved lines, rococo characters, and in imitation of the silversmith's craft, date from Queen Anne down to the early years of the nineteenth century. No hard and fast line can be drawn, but the collector can be largely guided by the crafts and art of the time, which are reflected in the work of the pewterer. There are many recipes for cleaning pewter, and one is to use silver sand free from grit, and a damp, rough cloth. Another is oil and rotten-stone, while some make use of the modern metal polish. The great thing is the old-fash-ioned elbow grease, and plenty of it. Scratches may be removed if not deep bv the use of a fine emery cloth, and the

minute marks of the emery cloth removed by rubbing afterwards with a finer cloth. Oxidised stains can be removed by a long soaking of paraffin, then a bath of very hot water, finishing with a dry cloth.

His Majesty.

Sir Stanley Clarke.

Major Ponsonby.

INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF ROYALTY.

INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF ROYALTY.