Sheffield Assay Office, responsible for stamping precious metal objects to certify their value, has shared images of its most fascinating items ahead of its 250th anniversary.
Since hallmarking its first object on September 20, 1773, the office has been responsible for assuring the quality of objects containing gold, silver, platinum and palladium.
Before receipts and warranty guarantees, this was the first way to give consumers protection. Now, it is one of only four remaining assay offices in the country.
In its early days, most of Sheffield Assay Office's business was local, but it now attracts customers from all over the world, still surveying millions of jewellery items each year which are left bearing the Sheffield “town” mark.
The anniversary celebration events in September include a tour of the town hall on the 8th, display openings at museums across the city including Millenium Gallery on the 9th, and a metalwork tour of the Cathedral on the 17th with a Curator of the Assay Office and a Heritage Officer.
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Sheffield Assay Office, Guardian's Hall, Portobello Street. The Office was at this location for the next 50 years, until 2008 when it moved to Hillsborough, where it remains today. | SAO