Friends excursions: Goldsmiths' Assay Office
Thursday 19 October 2017 11am - 1pm
Meet at Goldsmiths' Hall, Foster Lane, London, EC2V
£42. Includes goody bag.
Booking and attending Friends excursions and events
Dave Merry, hallmarking expert at the Goldsmiths’ Company, draws upon his 46 years of experience to lead this special Friends tour, which will take a detailed look at the various methods of testing precious metals, both ancient and modern.
The Goldsmiths’ Company is one of the Twelve Great Livery Companies of the City of London, charged with guaranteeing the finesse of precious metals. Assaying is the analysis of an article's composition, and the Company’s Assay Office is where gold, silver, platinum and Palladium are still assessed and hallmarked today. The term “hallmarking” even originates from the Company, as the Assay Office was set up in the Goldsmiths’ Hall in 1478.
On this tour of the Goldsmiths’ City headquarters, Friends will be shown the huge array of tools used for hand-marking and have the opportunity to watch the highly skilled staff action-testing and hallmarking different precious metal items. The tour will cover all aspects of the industry, including the process of verification of antiques and seized counterfeits and a guide to how laser marking is carried out.
By very special arrangement, Friends will also view a selection of historical and contemporary Goldsmiths' designs in the Company’s library. Subject to events, Friends may also have the opportunity to see inside the Goldsmiths’ spectacular livery hall.