DESIGN ARCHIVE: THE BIRMINGHAM ASSAY OFFICE
Design Archive: The Birmingham Assay Office
Estd. 1773
Location: Birmingham (UK)
The Birmingham Assay Office is the largest in the world. It has been carrying out its statutory duty of Hallmarking precious metals and jewellery since it opened at the end of the 18th century, making it one of Birmingham’s oldest institutions. Over the years, the Assay Office has diversified and it now offers a range of additional consumer focused services including laboratory testing, diamond and gemstone certification and jewellery valuation. An expanding education and training division adds to its portfolio.
History
The Birmingham Assay Office was founded by an Act of Parliament in 1773, when the city and some of its most famous industrialists and entrepreneurs were playing a major part in the Industrial Revolution. Members of Birmingham’s famous Lunar Society were at the forefront of technological and industrial change, whether they were developing canals and steam engines or minting coins and manufacturing high-quality silver. Members of this group of ‘natural philosophers’ (who met each month when the moon was at its fullest, hence the name) included James Watt, Josiah Wedgwood, Erasmus Darwin and Matthew Boulton.
At this time, silversmithing was booming in Birmingham due to the mass manufacture of small metal objects called ‘toys’. These objects were extremely fashionable and included items such as card cases, caddy spoons, vinaigrettes and snuff boxes. Birmingham manufacturers were also producing thousands of shoe buckles, spoons and buttons, which helped to give it the reputation of ‘the workshop of the world.’
Left: Matthew Boulton Right: Little Cannon Street
In 1762, Matthew Boulton (1728-1809) made a major investment in the business he had inherited from his father when he relocated from Snow Hill in the centre of the town to the purpose built Soho Manufactory in Handsworth, which was then just outside the Birmingham boundary. Boulton began to make larger items of silver, recognising the demand amongst the wealthy for beautiful and expensive silver to grace their dining tables. However, Boulton had to send his silver via horse drawn carriages to the Chester Assay Office for Hallmarking, which was over 70 miles away. This was expensive and caused delays and there were also threats to Boulton’s precious silver from highway robbery. Boulton decided to take action on behalf of the Birmingham silversmiths and promoted an Act of Parliament authorising an Assay Office in Birmingham.
When Boulton began his campaign, he was approached by the Sheffield Cutlers’ Company who were campaigning to establish an Assay Office in their town, and he agreed to fight the cause for both parties. Boulton had staunch support from local nobility, landed gentry and members of the Royal family who were all satisfied customers.
Despite major opposition from the Goldsmiths’ Company in London, his determination and skilful lobbying won through, and the Assay Bill was given Royal Assent on 28th May 1773. Once the Act was passed, suitable premises were found for Birmingham’s Assay Office in three rooms above the King’s Head Inn on New Street, and the office initially opened for one day a week on 31st August 1773. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the first customer was Matthew Boulton.
First register Birmingham Assay Office 1773 (Matthew Boulton being the first entry)
The origins of Birmingham Assay Office also provide the answer to why Birmingham’s Hallmark is an anchor – even though the city is miles away from the sea. During their time in London petitioning parliament, Boulton and the Sheffield cutlers carried out much of their business in the Crown and Anchor Tavern in the Strand, which was a popular haunt of politicians. Quite how the decision was made is still unclear, but it is thought to have been the toss of a coin that determined that Birmingham would take the Anchor part of the inn’s name for its Hallmark and Sheffield the crown (although this later changed to a rose).
The new Birmingham Assay Office was created to be self-supporting with all its revenues coming from assaying or marking. The Act of Parliament stipulated that the Office had to be controlled by a Board of 36 Guardians of the Standard of Wrought Plate in Birmingham, of whom not more than nine, nor less than six, might be connected with the trade.
By the 1773 Act, Birmingham Assay Office was entitled only to assay and mark goods of silver plate, but in 1824 an Act was passed repealing that part of the 1773 Act which related to Birmingham and granting powers for assaying and Hallmarking both gold and silver made within Birmingham or within a 30 mile radius of the town – a requirement which remained in force until 1854.
By 1815, the Assay Office had moved to new premises in Little Cannon Street (now demolished), and in 1877 moved again to its current site in Newhall Street.
Birmingham Assay Office Building in Newhall Street
The Assay Office is planning to move once more in 2014 into a new, purpose-built building within the St George’s Development, fronting Icknield Street. The development of a new home for the Assay Office is an exciting stage in its history and in the continued regeneration of the Jewellery Quarter. The site is located within the Jewellery Quarter Conservation Area and its regeneration is seen as part of the vision for the Quarter, as set out in the Big City Plan.
Archive, Library and Silver Collection
The Birmingham Assay Office’s archive contains items such as minute books, press clippings and records of each individual maker’s mark registered at the office. In addition, it has a collection of over 1,200 pieces of silver and plate, an extensive historical library of antiquarian and modern books and a collection of rare coins.
The library was founded in the late 19th century ‘primarily for the use of the Jewellers, Silversmiths, and other Art Metal Workers of Birmingham as a Reference Library.’ It contains volumes on art, science, jewellery, metalware and local history and is open to the public by appointment. Amongst the rarest books in the library are a copy of William Morris’s Kelmscott Chaucer, published in 1896, four 16th century Venice editions of Biringuccio’s De La Pirotechnica and the Boulton family bible, printed by Matthew Boulton’s friend John Baskerville. This sumptuous volume contains manuscript notes of births, christenings and inoculations, making it a fascinating personal record of the Boulton family. The library also contains original 19th century trade catalogues from companies such as Liberty & Co, Chance Brothers and Elkington & Co.
Birmingham Guild of Handicraft bowl
The silver collection consists of over 1,400 objects, many of them spectacular examples of the work of celebrated Birmingham silversmiths such as Elkington & Co, A.E. Jones, Matthew Boulton and Nathaniel Mills. From Birmingham toys to contemporary silver, the collection represents the best in Birmingham silver and the Assay Office continues to commission and acquire pieces. Visits to the silver collection for recognised groups are available.
Many thanks to Sally Hoban, Heritage and Training Officer at The Birmingham Assay Office for sharing these exclusive insights and allowing Obsessionistas unique access to the company's historical archive material.
The Birmingham Assay Office is open to members of the pubic on dedicated days throughout the year. Information about visit days can be found on their website.
All images © The Birmingham Assay Office and used with their kind permission