Silver Makers

Emes & Barnard – was a silversmiths trading in London from 1808. It was formed when Edward Barnard went into partnership with Rebecca Emes as a result of her husband, John Emes death. Barnard had been the manager of John Emes’ manufacturing silver ware firm. Edward Barnard entered his first mark in conjunction...

Finnigans was primarily a department store with shops in Manchester where the shop was founded by Benjamin Finnigan in 1875. Finnigans also manufactured luxury silver items and registered marks at London, Dublin, Chester and Sheffield in 1901 and with their Birmingham office in 1904. They went on to have shops in...

Francis Crump (1711 – 1800?) was a London silversmith particularly known for his holloware. He was apprenticed to Gabriel Sleath in 1726 and gained his freedom in 1741 when he registered his first mark as a largeworker. He registered a second mark in 1745 as a plateworker. He went into partnership with Sleath in...

G Cornell of Maidstone is a renowned jewellers who first started trading in 1796. They are still in existence today with two shops, the original in Maidstone and a further shop in Canterbury opened in 1983. As well as providing jewellery and giftware, the founder G Cornell also produced pieces for clockmakers. They...

George Betjemann & Sons were a London based cabinet makers founded in 1851 by George Betjemann. It became George Betjemann & Sons in 1858 when his two sons, George William and John joined the firm. They patented various mechanisms, the most impressive being one which automatically spread out the two side...

Guilloché (or Guilloche) is a decorative engraving technique named after the French engineer ‘“Guillot” who invented a machine that “could scratch fine patterns and designs on metallic surfaces’” It enables the engraving of very precise, detailed and repeating patterns onto material such as silver. The...

Hawksworth, Eyre & Co was a silversmith and manufacturing company of silver and silver plated items based in Sheffield. Charles Hawksworth and John Eyre created the firm in 1833 and registered their first mark in 1862. In 1869 the partnership was dissolved and the business was bought out by James Kebberling...

Hayne & Carter was a manufacturing silversmith founded by Thomas Wallis Snr. around 1758 in London when he entered his first mark as a largeworker, having completed his apprenticeship to William Jones in 1756. The firm was passed on to his son Thomas Wallis Jnr, in 1777 who entered into partnership with Jonathan...

Henry Holland was a silver flatware manufacturer in London specialising in spoons. He founded the company in 1838 and the firm became Holland & Son in 1851 when his son Henry joined him. In 1866 they made the major acquisition of Elizabeth Eaton & Son a renowned spoon maker with a long pedigree of making...

Henry Matthews was a Birmingham based silversmith. His first mark was registered in 1894 and he is remembered for his small silver items that required great attention to detail. He made a range of hair brushes, cigarette cases, frames, hat pins, card cases and buttons amongst other items. He stopped production in 1930.