Scottish Advertisements and Information

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JAMES NICOLSON

Falkirk


A FALKIRK WATCHMAKER

The death occured at his residence, Woodlands Crescent, Falkirk, yesterday of Mr James Nicolson, one of Falkirk's oldest and best-known businessmen. A native of Pittenweem, where he was first employed, Mr Nicolson went to Falkirk 57 years ago, and shortly afterwards acquired the watchmaking and jewellery business carried on by the late Mr David Strang, which had been established since 1837. He was a recognised expert on clockmaking of every description, and his opinion and advice concerning old grandfather clocks was frequently sought.

Mr Nicolson was a trustee of Falkirk and Counties Saving Bank, and had served as a member of the Management Committee for 32 years. He was 78 years of age, and is survived by his wife and one son.


Source: The Glasgow Herald - 20th April 1940

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BRENDA H. TEMPLE

Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire


An example of the work and mark of Brenda Temple:

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BT - Edinburgh - 1987

Brenda Temple registered with the Edinburgh Assay Office on the 3rd November 1986.

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CHARLES GREGO

27, High Street, Perth


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Charles Grego - Perth - 1854

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Charles Grego - Perth - 1884

Established 1812.

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JOHN TAYLOR

33, George Street, Perth


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John Taylor - Perth - 1884

Established 1825.

Successor to D. Robertson (probably Daniel Robertson) - late J. & A. M'Nab (John and Alexander McNab)

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JAMES DOUGLAS

Perth


CURE OF ST. VITUS' DANCE

In the month of November, 1844, I visited Perth, and was waited upon by Mr. John Douglas (manager at the office of the Perthshire Agricultural Company), whose daughter had for some time been suffering from chorea, or St. Vitus’ Dance. Having mesmerised her once, and left instructions how they were further to treat the case, Mr. James Douglas, jeweller, of Perth, proceeded with it ; and on the 31st of December, the patient’s father thus wrote to a relative in Edinburgh— the letter being at present in my possession :—

“ Should you have an opportunity of seeing Mr. Hall, tell him that my daughter is quite recovered, and at school again. This is another proof of the curative properties of mesmerism, which Mr. H. will, no doubt, explain to you ; and while we meet with many taunts and jeers from the would-be learned who dispute it, we have the satisfaction of pointing her out to them.”


Source: Mesmeric Experiences - Spencer Timothy Hall - 1845

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R.A. & J. HAY

The Heraldic Office, George Street, Perth

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R.A. & J. Hay - Perth - 1906

The partnership between Messrs. R. A. & J. Hay, booksellers, of George-street, Perth, having been dissolved, the business will be continued by Mr. R. A. Hay.

Source: The Printing Times and Lithogapher - 15th October 1881

Hay.—We have to announce the death, on the 22nd ult., at 6, Upper Grove-place, Edinburgh, of Mr. James Hay. The deceased was a member of the firm of R. A. & J. Hay, booksellers and stationers, Perth.

Source: The Printing Times and Lithogapher - 15th August 1883

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DUNCAN & SCOBBIE (SCOBIE)

81, St Vincent Street, Glasgow


An example of the work and mark of Duncan & Scobbie:

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D&S - Glasgow - 1947

The business of George Gabriel Duncan.

Duncan & Scobbie entered their marks with the Glasgow, London, Birmingham, Sheffield and Chester assay offices.

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ALEXANDER & LAWSON

68, Gordon Street, Glasgow


NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION
The Firm of ALEXANDER & LAWSON, which carried on business as Manufacturing Silversmiths, &c., at 68 Gordon Street, Glasgow, and of
which the sole Partners were William Alexander and George Duncan Lawson, was DISSOLVED, by mutual consent, on 31st December 1931.
The affairs of the Copartnery have been liquidated by John Broadfoot Wardhaugh, C.A., 194 West Regent Street, Glasgow, who has settled all debts due by the Firm.

WM. ALEXANDER.
VERA HOOSON (Clerk), Spinster, 14 Belgrave Square, Sheffield. 2.
MARJORIE MITCHELL- (Clerk). Spinster, 234 Woodseats Road, Sheffield, 8,
Witness,
Witnesses to the Signature of
William Alexander.

GEO. D. LAWSON.
GEO. W. Ross,. Silversmith, 68 Gordon Street. Glasgow, Witness,
ELIZABETH STRUTHERS, Clerkess. 68 Gordon Street, Glasgow, Witness,
Witnesses to the Signature of George
Duncan Lawson.

Glasgow. 23rd March 1933.


Source: The Edinburgh Gazette - 28th March 1933


Alexander & Lawson entered marks with the Glasgow, London and Chester assay offices.


The mark of Alexander & Lawson that was entered with the Chester Assay Office on the 16th April 1909:

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The mark of Alexander & Lawson that was entered with the London Assay Office on the 26th January 1914, was 'A & L' contained within a triple circular punch.

At least three marks were entered with the Glasgow Assay Office, 'A & L' contained within oblong punches with clipped corners.

The business is thought to have been succeeded by the firm of Lawson & Ross.

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THE DUNDEE EXHIBITION OF WATCHMAKERS AND JEWELLERS' WORK


AT the recent exhibition of the Dundee Association of Watchmakers and Jewellers, the watchmakers' competition was divided into two sections, three prizes being offered for competition among journeymen and six among apprentices. The work exhibited consisted chiefly of turning, such as staffs, cylinders and pinions. The following being the order in which the prizes were awarded,—first, Peter Cumming ; second, Geo. H. Johnston ; third, John Angus, in the section for journeymen. In the work of apprentices, where clock-work, pinions, and such-like predominated, the prizes were awarded as follows—first, C. Harris, Newport ; second, P. Forbes, Dundee ; third, T. Peebles ; fourth, R. Watson ; fifth, C. Sword ; sixth, J. Boyack. The jewellers' competition was also divided into two, there being two prizes for journeymen and four for apprentices, and contained some very handsome specimens of Scotch jewellery. The first prize was gained by Mr. J. McPherson for a ring set with Scotch pearls, and the second by Mr. J. Kirk, for a Scotch brooch. The successful apprentices were—first, Geo. Anderson, for a coloured gold brooch ; second, W. Sellars, for a coloured gold-mounted clan and pebble brooch ; third, Alec Mathers, for a clan and Scotch pebble brooch ; fourth, Jas. McKay, for sleeve links. Altogether the Exhibition was considered a great success, although there would have been far more competition had longer notice been given.


Source: The Watchmaker, Jeweller and Silversmith - 5th May 1876

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JOSEPH LETON

London


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J.L - Edinburgh - 1934

Joseph Leton is a bit of a mystery, but he may well be the Joseph Letowsky, a Russian Jew, of 17, Osborn Street, Whitechapel, who was naturalised in July 1906 and was aka Joseph Leton. A Joseph Letowsky, of 99, Oxford Street, Stepney, described as a chainmaker, entered his mark with the London Assay Office on the 6th June 1902. Joseph Leton, described as a jeweller, was recorded at 21, Whitechapel Road (Stepney) in The London Street Directory of 1921, and a Joseph Leton (38), jeweller, Whitechapel, and Morris Stroll (51), described as a Russian, of Herbert Street, Manchester, were charged on remand at Old Street Magistrates Court, London, in February, 1920, on a charge of melting down gold coins on the 29th January 1920. It is possible that all the references refer to the same man.

The Edinburgh Assay Office has no record of Joseph Leton's registration at Edinburgh, contrary to the marks on the above spoon, but does have note of him entering his mark with the Glasgow Assay Office, undated, and the address noted only as 'London'.

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GILBERT ROSS

28-32, Academy Street, Inverness, and Invergordon

Noted on replacement knife blades:

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Gilbert Ross & Co. were a long-established Inverness ironmongers, the were thought to have been in business up until the 1980's.

Recorded at 28, Academy Street, Inverness in 'The Inverness Burgh Directory - 1924-25'

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H. STEELE

1, Reay Street, Inverness


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H. Steele - Inverness - 1938

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HAMILTON, CRICHTON & Co.

41, George Street, Edinburgh


Alleged Theft of Jewellery.—On the 8th ult , a rather clever capture was made in Edinburgh of a lady and gentleman who are alleged to have endeavoured to carry off a diamond ring from a jeweller's shop in that city. It seems, says the Glasgow Evening News, that the gentleman, who gives the name of Miller, has been staying for two months in some of the best hotels in Edinburgh, and that he has been occasionally joined by a lady from Glasgow. They have gone to various jewellers in the city and made good purchases, and in the course of yesterday they went to Messrs. Hamilton and Crichton's, George-street, and asked for a sight of the diamond rings. On a case being shown to them, a shopman, it is said, observed the gentleman slip one of the value of 140l. into the sleeve of his coat, and substitute another worth only 10l. The shopman kept the visitors in play until two policemen arrived, and then said they must allow themselves to be searched. The gentleman at once put down the ring alleged to have been lifted, and he and the lady were marched off to the police office, where they were detained. The prisoners have a genteel bearing, and were dressed in fashionable style. At the Edinburgh Police Court the parties were remitted to a higher court on the charge of attempting to steal a diamond ring from the premises of Hamilton and Crichton.

Source: The Watchmaker, Jeweller and Silversmith - 5th October 1875

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WILLIAM FORBES

76, Argyll Street, later, 117, Buchanan Street, Glasgow

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William Forbes - Glasgow - 1852

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William Forbes - Glasgow - 1854

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JOHN GARTLY

Aberdeen


Mr. John Gartly, watchmaker, of whom intimation has already been given, has the honour of having invented a detached escapement of a superior kind, one of which is used in the new clock of our prison-steeple. This clock has agate-pallets, continues to go during the period of winding up, and keeps time with great accuracy.

Source: An Historical Account and Delineation of Aberdeen - Robert Wilson - 1822


John Gartly was noted as the Master to several Aberdeen silversmiths, including: Alexander Will, John Pepper, James Nicholson, James Allan, and George Booth.

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T.S. CUTHBERT

7, Princes Square, 48, Buchanan Street, Glasgow

In business since at least 1929. T.S. Cuthbert was still with the firm in 1944.

Norman McLaren Stainton Crosthwaite and Gordon McLean Crosthwaite, trading as T.S. Cuthbert.

Norman and Gordon Crosthwaite were still running the business in 1977.

T.S. CUTHBERT LIMITED

(In Liquidation)

Notice is hereby given that in a Petition at the instance of T.S. Cuthbert Limited to the Sheriff of Glasgow and Strathkelvin at Glasgow the Sheriff by Interlocutor dated 27th September 1984 ordered that T.S. Cuthbert Limited, be wound up by the Court under the provisions of the Companies Act 1948 ordered that Donald Ian Turner, C.A. of 50 George Square, Glasgow, be appointed Official Liquidator of the said Company.

MacRobert Son and Hutchison,
Petitioner's Agents.
91 West George Street,
Glasgow G21 PA.


Source: The Edinburgh Gazette - 9th October 1984

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TS above C contained within a trefoil

T.S. Cuthbert were registered with both the Glasgow and Edinburgh assay offices.

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THE MANUFACTURE OF PLATE AND JEWELRY

GOLD DIGGING IN SCOTLAND—THE INTRODUCTION OF THE JEWELER'S AND SILVERSMITH'S ART

Many centuries before coal or iron or any other mineral was known to them, the inhabitants of Scotland were acquainted with gold. Found in the river-beds of their own rugged country, the precious metal was to them an object of delight; and with the aid of stone hammers they formed it into rude ornaments for the decoration of their persons. Antiquarian research has brought to light many curious and interesting facts relating to the use of both gold and silver in this country in prehistoric times, and numerous articles of ornament fashioned in these metals are preserved in the museum of the Society of Antiquaries in Edinburgh. Coming down to historic times, we find that the Scotch had such a love for trinkets that the Norsemen in their sagas reproachfully characterized them as "forlorn wearers of rings." In the records of the twelfth century we have distinct evidence that gold was found in Scotland; for David I conveyed by charter to the Abbey of Dunfermline one-tenth part of all the precious metal found in Fife and Kinross. If one-tenth of the gold found in these counties was considered a tit gift from a king to a favourite ecclesiastical institution, we may conclude that the entire quantity obtained was considerable. Sir David Lindsay, the tutor of James V, in recounting the advantages of Scotland, says: "Of everilk mettall we have the riche mynis, baith gold, silver, and stanes precious." James IV had opened gold mines at Leadhills, and the search for the precious metal was continued by James V, who obtained the service of foreign miners, and conducted the operations in a more systematic manner than formerly. It is said that his enterprise was rewarded by obtaining a quantity of gold valued at £300,000. We learn that, at a later period, gold was dug at Wanlockhead by a Dutchman named Greig. The gold found by this man was made into a basin capable of holding an English gallon of liquid. The basin was filled with coins also made of Scotch gold, and presented by the Regent Morton to the King of France. One of the Earls of Hopetoun caused a search for gold to be made in the same locality at a later period; but the expenses were greater than the value of the metal found, and the adventure was abandoned, though not before sufficient gold had been obtained to form a small piece of plate. It is recorded by Boethius, Buchanan, and others, that gold was at one time found in remunerative quantities in Glengabber, a tributary of Megget Water in Peeblesshire. A grand scheme for the formation of a mining company to search for gold in Scotland was submitted to the council of Queen Elizabeth. The company was to consist of twenty-four landed gentlemen, each of whom was to pay £300 in support of the company. The prospect of success not being considered strong enough to induce gentlemen to embark in the scheme, it was suggested that each shareholder should be knighted, and called the "Knight of the Golden Mine," or the "Golden Knight." The company never was formed, nor has any noteworthy "find" of gold been made in recent times; so that to all appearance Scotland's native store of the precious metal is exhausted. Stray particles, it is true, are picked up from time to time; but these are of so little value that no one is now willing to be tempted by them to adopt the occupation of gold-seeker. It is, however, only a few years since a gentleman from England tried gold washing in the Glengabber Burn, but his expectations were not realized. Mention is made of a nugget weighing thirty ounces having been found by some of the early miners. The largest piece ever got at Wanlockhead is preserved in the British Museum. It weighs four or five ounces. Then are no silver mines in Scotland; but the lead obtained from the mines at Wanlockhead contains a proportion of silver, which is extracted. The quantity of silver thus obtained is from six thousand to eight thousand ounces a year, worth from £1,500 to £2,000. The total quantity of silver produced from lead ore in the United Kingdom is about 700.000 ounces, and a very small quantity is produced from native silver ore. From official returns it appears that five hundred to five thousand ounces of gold per annum are produced by mines in the United Kingdom; but, as already stated, none is now got in Scotland.

A love for finery seems to have been a conspicuous trait in the character of several of the early rulers of Scotland; and when trade was opened with some of the continental countries in the twelfth century, among the first things imported were vessels of gold and silver, armor, etc.; and a great show of these articles was made at the court, and among the nobility. In those days the churchmen were the great musters of the necessary and ornamental arts, and were so jealous of their skill that they could not afford to allow foreigners to have the sole privilege of supplying such articles as plate and jewelry; and accordingly they turned their attention to working in the precious metals. They became goldsmiths, jewelers, and lapidaries, and soon succeeded in producing articles which competed with some measure of success against foreign tradesmen. This was the beginning of the art of working in gold and silver in Scotland. In the course of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the trade assumed considerable importance. Ladies of the court and nobility wore tiaras, girdles, brooches, and ear-rings of gold and silver, set with native pearls and precious stones; while the armor and horse-trappings of the gentlemen were, according to some accounts, most gorgeously decorated with the same materials. The plate used in the churches was of the most superb description, and so were the crosiers, censers, &c. Though the native goldsmiths and jewelers had attained great excellence in their art, their handiwork was not sufficiently grand for the taste of some of the nobles, and they obtained splendid specimens of armor, jewelry, and gold and silver work from Italy and Flanders.

We get some idea of the kind and quantity of the plate and jewelry in the possession of old Scotch families from an inventory of the family jewels and valuables of the Campbells of Glenurchy, drawn up in 1640. Among the articles were a target of enamelled gold, set with diamonds, topazes, rubies, and sapphires—a gift from King James V; a round jewel of gold, set with precious stones, among which were twenty-nine diamonds and four great rubies—the gift of Queen Anne; a gold ring, set with a diamond shaped like a heart, and other diamonds; a silver brooch, set with precious stones; sixty-six gold buttons; twelve silver plates; four great silver chargers; two silver basins and jugs, partly gilt; one dozen silver trenchers; one dozen silver saucers; a great silver cup, partly gilt, and bearing the arms and names of the Laird of Duntrons: seven other silver goblets and cups, partly gilt; a great silver cup, with lid partly gilt, and ornamented with raised work; an engraved silver cup; three silver jugs for vinegar; three silver salt cellars; two bowls with silver lips and feet; eleven plain silver spoons, with the Lairds name on them; six silver spoons, with "round knapit endis overgilt;" and thirty-eight other silver spoons. It is evident that several of the articles mentioned were of foreign manufacture ; but we are warranted in supposing that a considerable proportion were home-made, and, moreover, that similar collections of plate were in the possession of other Scotch families at the date of the above inventory. About a century before that time one of the most important trades in Edinburgh was that of the goldsmith, and the city possesses in George Heriot's hospital a substantial token of the prosperity which rewarded some of the workers in the precious metals. George Heriot succeeded his father in the business of goldsmith and jeweler, and in 1597 was appointed goldsmith to Anne of Denmark, the Queen of James VI. Subsequently he received the appointment of goldsmith and jeweler to the King. Upon his Majesty's accession to the throne of England, Heriot, whose skill in his trade would appear to have been remarkable for those days, accompanied the King. He died in London in 1624, leaving a fortune of £50,000, which he had accumulated in thirty-eight years, and nearly half of that amount was bequeathed in trust to the town council and minister of Edinburgh, for the purpose of building an hospital in Edinburgh for the maintenance and education of indigent children, the sons of burgesses of the city.

The trade of the goldsmith was made the subject of legislative enactments in very early times. Gold and silver in a state of purity would be too soft and ductile to be used in the manufacture of plate or coins, and accordingly it is necessary to add a certain proportion of the baser metals. The minimum quantity of alloy required is well known, but as great facilities existed for the workers in the metals unduly increasing that quantity, and as they had availed themselves of those facilities to an extent warranting the interference of the state, a law was passed in 1238 which prohibited the use of gold of less than a certain standard of fineness, or of silver of a lower standard than the coin of the realm. The mode of testing the quality of gold and silver was by means of the "touchstone," a black stone of close, fine grain, on which the article to be tested was rubbed, the quality of metal being determined by the shades of color presented by the metal which adhered to the stone. The assaying or testing of the precious metals was a privilege conferred on the Goldsmith's Company of England in the year 1300, by an act of Edward I. The wardens of the. craft were empowered to go from shop to shop to see that no inferior gold was used in the making of plate or jewelry. All that came up to the standard of purity was then stamped with a leopard's head, while the inferior metal was forfeited to the King. Honesty would appear to have been at a discount in those days, for frequent reference is made to deceptions such as that practiced by the cutlers. " who covered tin with silver so subtilely and with such sleight that the same could not be discerned and severed from the tin, and by that means they sold the tin so covered for fine, silver." The preamble of an act passed in 1379 informs us that the gold and silver worked by English goldsmiths was oftentimes "less fine than it ought to be." An act of Henry IV, dated 1403, recites "that many fraudulent artificers do daily make locks, &c, of copper and atten. and the same do overgild and silver like to gold and silver, to the great deceit, loss, and hinderance to the common people, and the wasting of gold and silver." Persons continuing such practices were made liable to a heavy penalty. It appears, however, that ornaments for the church might be made of gilded or silvered copper, provided that some part of the copper was left exposed to show that the article was not solid. A number of acts were subsequently passed to regulate the trade in England.

The workers in the precious metals in Scotland seem to have been afflicted with weaknesses similar to those which caused their English brethren to be the subjects of so much legislation. In 1457 a statute was enacted for "the reformation of gold and silver wrought by goldsmiths in Scotland; and, to eschew the deceiving done to the King's lieges, there shall be ordained in each burgh where goldsmiths work one understanding and cunning man of good conscience, who shall be deacon of the craft; and when work is brought to the goldsmith, and it be gold, he shall give it forth again in work no worse than twenty grains, and silver eleven grains fine, and he shall take his work to the deacon of the craft, that he may examine that it be line as above written, and the said deacon shall set his mark and token thereto, together with the said goldsmith's; and when there is no goldsmith but one in the town, he shall show that work, tokened with his own mark, to the head officers of the town, who shall have a mark in like manner ordained therefor, and shall be set to the same work." It had evidently been found difficult to resist the temptation to deceive; for in 1555, " forasmuch as there was great, fraud," it was enacted that no goldsmith should "make in work nor set forth either his own or other men's silver under the just fineness of elevenpenny fine, under, the pain of death and confiscation of all their goods and movables; also, that no goldsmith set forth either his own or other men's gold under the just fineness of twenty-two carats fine, under the pain aforesaid."

About the earliest incorporated trade in Edinburgh was that of the hammermen, under which term were included goldsmiths, blacksmiths, saddlers, cutlers, and armorers. Other branches were subsequently added, but in 1580 the goldsmiths were formed into a separate company. By the articles of the company, apprentices were ordained to serve for a term of seven years, and masters were obliged to serve a regular apprenticeship and three years over and above to make them more perfect in their trade. They were, moreover, bound to give to the deacon of the craft proof of their skill in working and knowledge of the fineness of metals, &c. Only those admitted to the company by the deacon and master were to work, melt, or break down, or sell any gold or silver work, under penalty of twenty pounds or imprisonment. In 1687, the company was incorporated by a charter granted by James VII, and obtained additional powers for regulating the trade. According to the terms of the charter, those powers were granted "because the art and science of goldsmiths, for the most part, is exercised in the city of Edinburgh, to which our subjects frequently resort, because it is the seat of our supreme Parliament, and of the other supreme courts, and there are few goldsmiths in other cities." In virtue of the powers conferred on it, the company, from the date of its formation, tested and stamped all the plate and jewelry made in Scotland. The first stamp used was a castle, consisting of three towers, the central one being higher than the others. In 1681, a letter, representing the date, was stamped on as well as the castle. A black-letter "a" indicates that the article bearing it was made in the year between 29th September, 1681, and the same day in 1682—the other letters of the alphabet, omitting j and w, representing the succeeding twenty-three years. Each piece bore, in addition to the castle and date-letter, the assaymaster's initials, and the maker's initials. Seven alphabets, of a different type have been exhausted in recording the dates; and the letter of the eighth alphabet for the current year is an Egyptian capital L. In 1759, the standard mark of a thistle was substituted for the assay-master's initials, and is still continued. In 1784, a "duty-mark'' was added, the form being the head of the sovereign.

The silver mace of the city of Edinburgh is dated 1617; the High Church plate, 1643; Newbattle Church plate, 1646. Other towns in Scotland seem to have availed themselves of the early acts of Parliament, and used their own town marks. The plate of the parish church of St. Andrew's bears date 1671, and is marked with a St. Andrew cross; and the plate of the West Church of Perth, dated 1771, bears, in addition to the Edinburgh marks, the town symbol of a spread eagle. Glasgow was not made an assay town until 1819. The marks used on the plate stamped at Glasgow are a lion rampant, the arms of the city, the maker's initials, the date letter, and the sovereign's head.

The number of persons working in gold, silver, and precious stones in Scotland is little short of two thousand, and a large proportion of these are located in Edinburgh. Plate and jewelry being articles of luxury, the demand for them fluctuates according to the prosperity of the country—a fact clearly brought out by the returns of the quantities of gold and silver used in each year. The high price of gold plate puts it beyond the attainment of all save a select few in the highest ranks of society; but for those who have the desire without the means to possess real articles, electro-plate forms a passable substitute, though half the charm of the possession is lost in the knowledge that the beauty of the articles is only skin-deep, and that the skin is a very thin one. Silver-plate has become common among the middle class of the population, and articles in electro-plate arc in great demand. Some of the latter are beautifully got up; but the ornamentation generally is not so finely executed as in the case of solid silver work. Only a small quantity of plated goods is made in Scotland, and a considerable proportion of the other work is done to order. For a few years past the silversmith and jeweler trades have been extending in Edinburgh, and there are indications that they will increase still further. The city is not likely to become a manufacturing center in the common meaning of the term, nor in some respects would it be desirable. It is, however, well adapted to become a seat of light, artistic occupations, and many such are carried on in it. No city in Britain possesses a better school of design, and it is gratifying to know that it is largely taken advantage of. Instead of slavishly copying French or Italian works, as of old, our artists in gold and silver are working a good deal according to their own devices, and in many cases with the best results. In the shops of the leading firms in the trade may be seen articles of all kinds wrought from original designs, not one whit inferior to the best productions of any other country in the same class of goods. Workmen trained in Edinburgh are highly valued by the London manufacturers of plate and jewelry, and some of the best work done in the metropolis is by their hands.

In another paper we shall give a description of plate and jewel making.


Source: Annual Report On Foreign Commerce - United States - 1869

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HOW SILVERPLATE IS MADE—CHASING, ENGRAVING, CASTING, AND ELECTRO-PLATING— THE ASSAY—JEWEL-MAKING, GEM-SETTING, GOLD-BEATING, AND SEAL-ENGRAVING

Few occupations afford such a wide field for the exercise of artistic taste as those of the goldsmith, silversmith, and jeweler. The variety of articles fashioned by them is vey extensive, and practically there is no limit to the number of designs that may be employed. Sometimes the task of the goldsmith or silversmith is to produce an article of a purely ornamental character, but more generally use and ornament are combined. With the jeweler, ornament is the chief object; and he is, accordingly, less restricted in working out his designs. Only in a few cases is the vendor of plate and jewelry the actual maker; and this is one of the peculiarities of the trade. There are a number of "small masters" in each department, who occupy workshops of their own, and work for the merchants by contract or otherwise, none of them being bound to work exclusively for one merchant. The merchant gets an order for a particular article, and if it is to be an elaborate piece of new design, he employs an artist to make a model or a drawing, which he intrusts to the "small master" whom he considers best able to do the work.

By the kindness of the principal partner in the firm of Messrs. Mackay, Cunningham & Co., her Majesty's goldsmiths for Scotland, the writer was enabled to visit the workshops in which the home-made portion of the goods dealt in by that, firm is produced. The workshops are situated in out-of-the-way lanes in the new town, and, like those in which baser metals are wrought, are dingy, smoke-begrimed places. In one shop the workmen were engaged on some of the lighter articles of silver-plate—such as tea and coffee sets, claret jugs, and biscuit boxes. A brief description of the making of a teapot, will suffice to convey an idea of the silversmith's occupation. The bowl or body is made of one piece of silver hammered up from the flat. The silver is first rolled out into a sheet about the thickness of a shilling, and a piece of the required size having been cut, it is hammered on a block of hardwood, in the surface of which a smooth saucer-like hollow has been formed. By this means the metal is brought to the shape of a bowl. It is then taken to an anvil, and by skillful hammering the rim of the bowl is gradually contracted until the vessel is almost of a globular shape, with an opening three or four inches in diameter on what is to be its upper end. As the striking tends to harden the silver, the vessel is annealed several times during the hammering process. This is done by bringing it to a red heat and allowing it to cool gradually. When the body of the teapot is brought to nearly the required shape by the first hammering, it is planished or made smooth by a slightly different process. Great care must be taken to hammer the vessel equally, else some parts might become thin or be broken through completely. The lid, spout, and handle are next made, and a hoop of metal is soldered on the lower part to form a base or foot. The spout is stamped out of a sheet of metal by means of dies, and is made in two halves, which are soldered together. The handle is made in the same manner. In this way an ornamental form is given to those parts without much labor. It depends on the design whether the spout and handle should be attached or not before the chasing or engraving is done on the body of the tea-pot. If the chasing is of an elaborate pattern, it is done before the spout and handle are put on, because the absence of these permits the chaser to work more readily and conveniently.

The chasing of silver is a highly artistic occupation, and on the manner in which it is executed the beauty and value of an article chiefly depend. The chaser begins by drawing the design on the silver with a hard lead pencil. Where parts have to he brought out in high relief—such as figures, festoons of flowers, or bunches of fruit—the metal is struck out from the inside by means of a " snarling-iron." No attempt is made to produce anything approaching a likeness of the fruit or flowers in this way, the object being merely to raise the metal over a space, and to a height sufficient to admit of the forms being produced by manipulation from the outside. The vessel is then filled up with pitch, a substance sufficiently consistent to preserve the vessel from losing shape under the punches of the chaser, and yet not too hard to prevent, the necessary indentations being made. A vessel chased in high relief looks to the uninitiated as if the work had been done by using dies or punches from the inside, whereas, except in such cases as we have mentioned, the chasing is done entirely from the outside. Having completed the operations described, the chaser rests the vessel on a circular cushion, and begins the punching. He first goes over the outline of a small patch of the design, and then fills in the details. His tools are small steel punches and a hammer; but such variety is there in the details of patterns, that not fewer than about three hundred punches are required to form a complete set. The groundwork of chasing is usually rough or "matted," and that part is done with punches having checkered faces in all degrees of fineness. The rapidity with which the most elaborate designs are wrought out is surprising. The occupation is light, but can be followed only by persons possessing artistic taste and skill. After the chasing is completed, the parts are soldered together by means of an oxy-hydrogen blowpipe, and the article is then ready for polishing. All the smooth portions are rubbed with a soft kind of stone, used moist, and the chased parts are brightened by a revolving brush supplied with rottenstone. The parts which require to be very bright are burnished, while those that are to be frosted are treated with certain chemicals.

Sometimes the vessels are decorated with engraved designs, and this requires the service of a clans of workmen distinct from the chasers. The engraver draws his patterns on the silver, and cuts out the lines, thus removing a portion of the metal; whereas, the chaser produces his effects without reducing the material. In some of the heavier kinds of plate, such as candelabra, center-pieces, and tea-urns, the ornaments are formed by casting. Effigies of animals, detached shields, trunks of trees. &c, are formed in this way. The models are made in wax, and from these molds are taken in sand, much in the same way as for castings in brass or iron; but the sand leaves a rough surface, and the chaser has to give the castings a finishing touch. Articles of electroplate are usually made of German silver, and treated in the same way as silver through all the preliminary stages; but after the chasing has been done, the vessels are exposed to the action of a battery and thus coated with pure silver. Many articles made of silver are either wholly or partially plated with gold by the electro-process.

The making of spoons and forks was at one time an extensive branch of the silversmith trade in Edinburgh, but now there is only one workshop in which these articles are produced. It appears that the profits on spoons and forks are small, and hence there is no inducement to enter into competition with the manufacturers in London who have extensive establishments in which machinery is applied to most parts of the work. As made in the old-fashioned but thoroughly substantial way, spoons are first forged, then stamped by means of dies, and afterwards filed and polished by hand.

The assay office of the Goldsmith's Hall, on the south bridge, Edinburgh, is open on alternate days, when articles of gold or silver that require to be guaranteed by the stamp of genuineness are sent in and assayed. The assay-master scrapes a small quantity of metal off each article and submits it to a test, in order to ascertain the quality. The duty charged on each ounce of gold-plate is 17s. 6d., and on silver-plate 1s. 6d.

Messrs. Mackay, Cunningham & Co. have done much to improve and extend the art of working in gold and silver in Scotland. Liberal encouragement has been given to native talent, and the result has gone to prove that the highest class of plate and jewelry can be produced in Edinburgh as readily as in London or elsewhere, and that, if there be any difference in excellence of workmanship, it is in favor of this city. Designers and modelers of great ability are now regularly employed in the trade; and at least one hand, whose fame in another department of art will live through many generations, has lent assistance to establish a genuine reputation for the productions of the Scottish goldsmiths. We may notice, one or two of the more important works that the firm we have referred to have just completed. Conspicuous by its size and novelty of style is a trophy for the officers' mess of the 92d Highland regiment. It is in the form of a triangular obelisk of Peterhead granite, rising from a silver pedestal, which rests upon a broad base of granite, the total height being about three feet. Standing on the angle of the base are three figures, representing an officer, a sergeant, and a piper, all in the full uniform of the regiment. The figures, which are eight inches high, are in frosted silver, and have been beautifully modeled. We understand they were the last work executed by the late Mr. William Beattie, whose skill as a modeler is well known in artistic circles. The sides of the pedestal bear in high relief the crest and badge of the regiment—a stag's bead and a wreath of ivy. On each of the angles of the pedestal is a sphinx in frosted silver, and the shaft of the obelisk is girt at intervals by bands of silver, on which are emblazoned the names of the more important actions in which the regiment has participated. Both in conception and execution the trophy is a noble piece of plate, and will, no doubt, be cherished as such by the owners.

A beautiful epergne or center ornament of silver next claims attention. It has been made for a famous breeder of Leicester sheep, and consists of an oak tree denuded of its upper part, but retaining a few of its branches, which support a crystal fruit dish. On a grass plot surrounding the trunk of the oak are a group of Leicester sheep, which have been finely modeled by Mr. Gourley Steell, R. S. A. The base is about three inches in depth, and is surrounded by a series of circular panels or recesses in which are disposed the medals, about twenty in number, won by the owner at various agricultural shows. A communion service for the congregation of the Rev. Dr. Caudlish shows a great advance on the common style of Presbyterian church plate. We may also mention as being a difficult piece of work admirably executed, a tea service, similar in design to one made for the King of Siam. Each piece bears a characteristic scene worked out in high relief—thus the tea-pot has a representation of the cultivation of the tea plant; the sugar basin, of gathering the sugar-cane; the coffee-pot, of a coffee plantation; and the cream ewer, of a herd of cattle.

No ornamental art enjoys a wider patronage than that of the jeweler. His productions grace the brow of royalty, and form an object of pride with the poorest domestic; he is intrusted with the "setting" of gems worth a hundred fortunes; and has to exercise his ingenuity to produce trinkets for the million. In jewelry, "a thing of beauty" is not "a joy forever, nor would the jeweler wish it were so. With changes of fashion in dress come changes of fashion in jewels, and there is thus a constant demand for new designs. To meet this demand, gold, silver, and gems are combined in ever-varying styles. The manufacture of jewelry, as already stated, was early practiced in Scotland, and for many years past the "pebble jewelry" made in this country has been much in demand at home and abroad. The style has been copied by the English manufacturers, who, by using an inferior quality of materials, have prevented the Scotch makers from reaping the full benefit of this branch of their trade, for the exercise of which the abundant supply of fine pebbles to be obtained in Scotland, gives them peculiar facilities. In Edinburgh, great attention has been paid to the manufacture of pebble jewelry, and a degree of excellence has been attained which it would be almost impossible to surpass. Some of the early work in pebbles was very coarse and inartistic; the stones were roughly cut, and arranged without regard to shades of color; but now the utmost care is taken in the cutting and arranging of the pebbles, and beautiful effects are thereby produced.

In Edinburgh, there are upwards of thirty master jewelers, who employ from half a dozen to thirty men each. All the work done is of a superior kind, no attempt being made to vie with Birmingham in the production of cheap and showy articles, the beauty of which is as transient as that of a flower. Gold and silver of standard quality are used to a large extent, but for a certain class of trinkets these metals are alloyed with a considerable proportion of copper. The jeweler melts his metals in a crucible, and casts them into ingots about two inches broad, three inches long, and one-eighth of an inch thick. The ingots are reduced to any degree of thickness by being passed between steel rollers. The sheets or plates of metal thus produced are intrusted to a workman, who, guided by drawings or models, clips out the pieces required for the various articles to be made. The pieces are given along with the designs to other workmen, who put them together. These men are seated at large tables, round the sides of which are a series of semicircular recesses, each recess being occupied by a workman. After the pieces are brought to the exact size required, they are soldered together by an oxy-hydrogen blowpipe. Articles of an ornate character, such as brooches and bracelets, covered with designs in filigree work, or inlaid with pebbles, require great nicety of manipulation, and the number of parts which go to compose one of these is immense. We were shown a pebble bracelet of a finely wrought geometrical pattern, in which were no fewer than one hundred and sixty pieces of stone, each of which was shaped and fitted with the greatest exactness. In making an article which is to be inlaid with pebbles, such as a brooch, the jeweler forms a back or foundation, to which a plate, pierced with apertures for the pebbles, is fixed, a convenient space being left between the two plates. At this stage the work is passed to the lapidary, who cuts and fixes the pebbles. The stones are first cut with a revolving disc of iron, coated with emery and oil, and roughly shaped with a pair of pincers. Each piece is then taken in succession and attached to a "gum-stick," a small piece of wood with a quantity of strong cement on one end. Held in this way, the stone is ground to the required shape on a revolving disc. When all the pieces are brought to the shape of the apertures designed for them, they are set in with shellac. The outer surface has, up till this time, been left rough; but, after the cement has hardened, the lapidary takes the brooch in his hand, and manipulates it on the grinding disc until the stone is reduced to the level of the metal which surrounds it. The surface is next polished, and the brooch is returned to the jeweler. Usually pebble brooches have in the center a "cairngorm," or what is commonly supposed to be one; though, in most cases, the oriental topaz does duty for the Highland crystal, and, so far as beauty is concerned, with considerable advantage on its side. The topazes are obtained ready cut, and are not " set" until the work on the other parts of the brooch is all but completed. The exposed surface of the metal on the face of the brooch is usually relieved by engraved scroll-work. Enameled jewelry has recently come into fashion to some extent, and fine specimens have been produced, the runic patterns especially being very beautiful.

The lapidaries obtain their pebbles from various quarters of the country. Aberdeenshire furnishes emeralds, agates, beryls, and the famous Cairngorm cystals; and in the parish of Leslie, in the same county, is found a beautiful amianthus, which is wrought into snuff-boxes, etc. Ayrshire furnishes agates and jaspers; Perthshire, bloodstone and a variety of others; Forfarshire, jaspers; and Mid Lothian, the Pentland pebble and the Arthur's Seat jasper. Amethysts were once abundant in Scotland, but they have now become so scarce that they fetch about £3 an ounce. At Elle, in Fifeshire, garnets are occasionally found. Then there are the Scotch pearls, so much valued fur their size and beauty, though inferior in some respects to the Oriental kind. With such a variety of material, the Scotch jewellers have great facilities for producing multitudinous designs, and they seem to be improving their opportunity.

As might be expected, the silversmiths and jewelers are an intelligent class of workmen, and nearly all of them are or have been students in the school of design. Their occupation being, however, to a great extent simply mechanical, their wages are not higher than those of skilled workmen in other trades which fall under that designation. Silversmiths and lapidaries serve an apprenticeship of six years, and jewelers and silverchasers of seven years. Silversmiths, chasers, and jewelers generally receive from 20s. to 30s. a week, and lapidaries 24s.; but in exceptional cases higher rates are earned. About two years ago, the men made a successful movement for the reduction of their hours of labor to fifty-seven a week; but, without any pressure on their part, a considerable advance has been made on the rate of wages within the past few years.

Besides being used in the manufacture of plate and jewelry, gold and silver are extensively employed in decorating various articles, such as picture-frames and other articles of furniture, books, carved work, &c. For this purpose, the metals are hammered out into exceedingly thin plates or leaves. Gold-beating, as the process of making these leaves is called, is an art of great antiquity; and it would seem that gilded articles were so fashionable at one time in this country that it became necessary for the State to interfere to prevent, the precious metals from being wasted in such a way. About the year 1619, a statute of James I enacted that, "the better to prevent the unnecessary and excessive vent of gold and silver foliate (i. e, leaf) within this realm, none such shall from henceforth he wrought or used in any building, ceiling, wainscot, bedstead, chairs, stools, clothes, or any other ornament whatsoever, except it be armor or weapons, or in arms or ensigns of honor at funerals or monuments of the dead." Gold-beating was introduced into Scotland in the year 1805 by the late Mr. Wright, of the firm of Ross & Wright, Calton street. Mr. Wright was presented with a complete set of working apparatus by the Highland Society for having introduced the art into Scotland, and he was appointed gold-beater to his Majesty King George IV. The trade has not thriven on Scotch soil, however. There are but two or three gold-beaters' shops north of the Tweed, and in these only a few men are employed. Gold or silver leaf in made by first rolling out the metal into thin plates, and then hammering them between layers of prepared ox-gut, called "gold-beaters'skin." The gold leaves are made so thin that it would require three hundred thousand of them laid one, on the top of the other to make the thickness of an inch. The leaves measure 3.3 inches square, and two thousand of them are produced from a piece of gold weighing four pennyweights less than an ounce. Machinery has recently been applied to supersede the arduous manual labor of gold-beating.

Seal-engraving is an art akin to jewel-making, and merits a passing notice. The practice of using gummed envelopes has, by superseding wax, gone far to extinguish the occupation of the seal-engraver. Not many years ago a massive seal, bearing the crest of the wearer—if he were fortunate enough to have one, or his initials if he could not claim heraldic privileges—was invariably suspended on the watch-guards of gentlemen; and ladies carried daintily got-up seals, with which they impressed emblems of love on the gaudily colored and perfumed wax which preserved the contents of their billets-doux from the glance of profane eyes. Wax and seals have had their day, but signet-rings are still in fashion, and keep the lathes of the engravers from coming to a dead stand. Engraving on gems is one of the nicest artistic occupations. It is easy for workers in metals to repair flaws or imperfections, but the seal-engraver has no facilities for doing so. If he makes a blunder, the gem is ruined, and his labor is lost. He begins operations by fixing the gem on a convenient handle, and then draws the design upon it with a brass needle. The engraving is done by means of fine tools resembling drills, to which a rapid revolving motion is given in a small lathe. The tools are dipped from time to time into a composition of diamond dust and olive oil; and the operator holds the gem in his hand and applies it to the tools. So fine is the work generally that a powerful eyeglass has to be used: and so slow is the process of cutting that a whole day is required for the engraving of a circular ribbon and motto.

The principal seal-engraver in Scotland is Mr. Butters, of George street, Edinburgh.


Source: Annual Report On Foreign Commerce - United States - 1869

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dognose
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Re: Scottish Advertisements and Information

Post by dognose »

STREAMER & KUTTNER, later, MARCUS STREAMER

77, Dundas Street, later, 141, George Street, Glasgow


The Firm of STREAMER & KUTTNER, Jewellers, 77, Dundas Street, Glasgow, was this day dissolved by mutual consent. The liabilities will be paid by Mr. Streamer.
Glasgow, March 8, 1872.

MARCUS STREAMER.
WILLIAM KUTTNER.

RICHARD AGAR, Clerk to Barr & Carstairs,
Accountants, Glasgow, Witness.
WILLIAM HUNTEB,, Clerk to Barr & Carstairs,
Accountants, Glasgow, Witness


Source: The Edinburgh Gazette - 12th March 1872


Sequestrations in Scotland

Streamer, Marcus, 141, George-street, Glasgow, watch manufacturer and wholesale jeweller. March 25, with protection. Tr. & Com., Faculty Hall, Glasgow, April 5 at 12. Claims by July 25. Agents, D. & J. Hill, 73, Renfield-street, Glasgow.


Source: The Watchmaker, Jeweller and Silversmith - 5th April 1878


Image

Source: The Edinburgh Gazette - 13th April 1880


Noted on a genealogy website and may be relevant:

Marcus Streamer b. 1836 in Germany, married Lena Michael. They moved to Scotland and lived there while having 7 children, Hannah, Raphael, Michael, Louis, Gertrude, Bertha and Augusta. Came to Toronto, Canada abt 1880. Some of the children stayed in Canada and the rest moved to the USA.


Regarding 'Streamer & Kuttner', this may refer to Adolph Kuttner, a jeweller who entered his mark 'AK' with the Glasgow Assay Office.

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Re: Scottish Advertisements and Information

Post by dognose »

JOSEPH HULL

31, High Street, later, 80 Murraygate, Dundee


Recorded as a watchmaker, 31, High Street, Dundee, and a member of The British Horological Institute in 1869.

See also: http://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic ... ull#p86823

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