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Id #SA1126534

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Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

Name: Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810
Brand: Antique
SKU: SA1126534
Availability: SoldOut

19th century

Sold by Regent Antiques

Description

This is a fabulous antique Neo-classical George III Old Sheffield plate silver on copper bread basket / fruit dish, circa 1810 in date.

The rectagular swing handled basket features an engraved body in the Neo-Classical taste with foliate decoration.

It features the family crest with the motto Semper Paratus, a Latin phrase, meaning "Always Ready".

This item is of the highest quality with fabulous decorations ready to grace your dining table.

Condition:

In excellent condition, please see photos for confirmation.

Dimensions in cm:

Height 11 cm x Width 32 cm x Depth 21 cm

Dimensions in inches:

Height 4 inches x Width 1 foot, 1 inch x Depth 8 inches

Old Sheffield Plate

or ‘fused plate’ as it is sometimes known, was the first commercially viable method of plating metal.

The material was accidentally invented by Thomas Boulsover, of Sheffield's Cutlers Company, in 1743. While trying to repair the handle of a customer's decorative knife, he heated it too much and the silver started to melt. When he examined the damaged handle, he noticed that the silver and copper had fused together very strongly. Experiments showed that the two metals behaved as one when he tried to reshape them, even though he could clearly see two different layers.

Boulsover set up in business, funded by Strelley Pegge of Beauchief, and carried out further experiments in which he put a thin sheet of silver on a thick ingot of copper and heated the two together to fuse them. When the composite block was hammered or rolled to make it thinner, the two metals were reduced in thickness at similar rates. Using this method, Boulsover was able to make sheets of metal which had a thin layer of silver on the top surface and a thick layer of copper underneath. When this new material was used to make buttons, they looked and behaved like silver buttons but were a fraction of the cost.

The technique Boulsover developed was to sandwich an ingot of copper between two plates of silver, tightly bind it with wire, heat it in a furnace and then mill it out in to sheet, from which objects could be made.

Our reference: A4380

Physical Dimensions

Height

11cm (4.33")

Width

32cm (12.60")

Depth

21cm (8.27")

Declaration

Regent Antiques has dated this piece to the 1800s.

Reference Numbers

Sellingantiques Reference

SA1126534

Dealers Internal Reference

A4380

Description

This is a fabulous antique Neo-classical George III Old Sheffield plate silver on copper bread basket / fruit dish, circa 1810 in date.

“

The rectagular swing handled basket features an engraved body in the Neo-Classical taste with foliate decoration.

Regent Antiques

fig 1. Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

It features the family crest with the motto Semper Paratus, a Latin phrase, meaning "Always Ready".

This item is of the highest quality with fabulous decorations ready to grace your dining table.

Condition:

fig 2. Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

In excellent condition, please see photos for confirmation.

Dimensions in cm:

Height 11 cm x Width 32 cm x Depth 21 cm

Dimensions in inches:

Height 4 inches x Width 1 foot, 1 inch x Depth 8 inches

Old Sheffield Plate

fig 3. Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

or ‘fused plate’ as it is sometimes known, was the first commercially viable method of plating metal.

The material was accidentally invented by Thomas Boulsover, of Sheffield's Cutlers Company, in 1743. While trying to repair the handle of a customer's decorative knife, he heated it too much and the silver started to melt. When he examined the damaged handle, he noticed that the silver and copper had fused together very strongly. Experiments showed that the two metals behaved as one when he tried to reshape them, even though he could clearly see two different layers.

fig 4. Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

Boulsover set up in business, funded by Strelley Pegge of Beauchief, and carried out further experiments in which he put a thin sheet of silver on a thick ingot of copper and heated the two together to fuse them. When the composite block was hammered or rolled to make it thinner, the two metals were reduced in thickness at similar rates. Using this method, Boulsover was able to make sheets of metal which had a thin layer of silver on the top surface and a thick layer of copper underneath. When this new material was used to make buttons, they looked and behaved like silver buttons but were a fraction of the cost.

fig 5. Antique George III Old Sheffield Silver on Copper Basket Circa 1810

The technique Boulsover developed was to sandwich an ingot of copper between two plates of silver, tightly bind it with wire, heat it in a furnace and then mill it out in to sheet, from which objects could be made.

Our reference: A4380