First Year of Sheffield Assay Office Salt Pots
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Pair Salt Pots - Oval pierced with gadroon rims on four claw & ball feet with blue glass liners Hallmark: Sheffield 1773 by Richard Morton & Company. N.B. This was the first year of the Sheffield Assay Office. Dimensions: 82mm (3.25") long x 62mm (2.4") wide x 46mm (1.8") high; 114 grams (3.7 troy ounces) weight of silver - Ref. No.: TY/1446
This is an historically important pair of silver salt pots. Each pot bears a clear hallmark dating from the first year that the Sheffield Assay office opened. Items bearing these marks are extremely rare.
The salt pots are in excellent condition with attractive anthemion style pierced and engraved decoration and inverted heart-shaped vacant cartouches.
The various makers involved in the "& Company" part of the mark are very interesting and were as follows: - Thomas Warris, John Winter, Samuel Roberts, John Elam, Thomas Sattle, John Eyre and Nathaniel Smith. The assay office opened on September 11th with the partnership of John Winter, John Parsons & Charles Hall entering the very first mark. Richard Morton entered a solo mark on Sept 16th. and Samuel Roberts followed on Sept. 20th. A second mark was also entered on Sept. 30th for Samuel Roberts & Co. (SR&Co) and involved all of the men in the RM&Co partnership apart from Morton and Warris. The same address of Brinsworth Orchard, Sheffield was given for both 30th Sept. marks, but for none of the others. Very intriguing!