Draft regulations on hallmarking and provision for regular trials by the Mint's assay master, with notes on past legislation

Author: Isaac Newton

Source: MINT 19/2/511-12, National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

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- Revision History
  - 1 January 2001
    - Catalogue information compiled by Rob Iliffe, Peter Spargo & John Young
  - 29 September 2011
    - Catalogue exported to teiHeader by Michael Hawkins
  - 16 May 2017
    - Transcribed by Will Scott
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Related Texts
- This document is a version of:
  Draft regulations on hallmarking and provision for regular trials by the Mint's assay master, with notes on past legislation [MINT 19/2/510]

<511r>

|All| Wrought sill|v|er must be of sterling allay or better & not worse th{illeg} \money/ & shall be ass{illeg}|a|yed by the Wardens & marked with the Leopards head before it go out of the workmans hands. Offenders convict to eb punished by imprisonment & ransome {illeg}|a|t y^e Kings will. The Wardens of the craft may go from shop to shop to essay if works of gold be of the touch of Paris, & such as are not shall be forfeit to y^e King. 28. Edw. 1. c. 20.

After the plate is essayed & marked with the kings mark the Goldsmith shall set his own mark for w^ch he will answer, & w^ch shall be known to them who are assigned by the King to survey their work. The plate shall be of sterling. Those assigned in every town shall make their searches as offten as shall be ordeined. The value of the metall found in default, forfeited to y^e king. No Goldsmith shall take for vessel white & of the weight of a pound, that is to say, of the price of two marks of Paris weight, but eighteen pence as they do at Paris. 37 Edw. 3. c. 7.

Necessary soder allowed. No workman to sell wrought silver before it be touched with the touch & with the mark of the workman upon pain of forfeiting double value, the one half to the king. And if any plate touched \w^th y^e Leopards head/ be not as fine as sterling, the keeper of the touch shall make the like forfeit{illeg}|u|re, & so shall the workman. And the like for York, Newcastle, Lincoln Norwich Bristol Salisbury & Coventry as for London & each to have different to{illeg}|u|ches. 2 Hen. 6. c. 2|1|4.

Twelve pence per pound weight \of silver & per ounce w^t of gold/ allowed for wast & remedy. And the single value of the plate only forfeited. Wrought gold not less fine then 22 carats. 18 Eliz. c. 15

<512v>

Quære whether

The Assayer shall report every half penny weight of betterness or worsness upon pain of disability.

The Diet s{t}{illeg}|ha||ll| be tried annually by the Queens Assaymaster in the presence of

The Diets of country corporations s{t}{illeg}|ha||ll| be tried every years by the same Assaym^r in the presence of

{illeg}|Twelve| pence in y^e pound s{t}{illeg}|ha||ll| be allowed for wast & remedy, besides the fashion or workmanship.

The Assayer shall be appointed by the company or y^e Crown

A searcher in every city |(|to be annually appointed by the Court of Aldermen,|)| may deface all plate abounding with t{illeg}|oo| much soder, seize all unmarked plate exposed to sale & cause any other suspected pieces of plate to be assayed.

If any plate be worse then sterling the owner shall forfeit & the toucher shall forfeit as much.

If any plate being touched shall afterwards be found \a penny w^t/ worse then sta|e|rling {&}|o||r| being melted down w^th the soder the mass shall be found two penny weight worse then sterling, the persons offending (besides the forfeiture of the plate) shall lose their franchises &c.

The Assayer shall deface coarse plate & plate w^th too much soder

|1.| All s|S|ilver plate including {illeg}|t|he soder shall be not be less in fineness then {illeg} ounces penny w^t {illeg}|o|f fine silver in y^e pound w^t Troy.|,| |unless by| /by {sic} accident {illeg}|&| within the limits \& under the penalties/ hereafter mentioned.\

|3| All /Clean\ p|P|late less in fineness, or abounding w^th too much\more/ soder then is necessary may shall be defaced by the Assayer {illeg}|&| not touched {b} returned to y

|2| The Assayer shall report every halfpenny w{o}|^t| of b{illeg}|e|tterness or worsness upon pain of

|{illeg} |4|| Clean plate an halfpenny w^t wors shall be forfeited to y^e Wardens & company, a penny weight worse shall disf{illeg}|r|anchise \& disable/ the maker.

|5| Plate melted down w^th the soder three halfpenny w^t worse shall be forfeited to the company, two penny w^t worse shall disfranchise \& disable/ the maker.

|6.| The Assayer \or toucher/ upon discovering any Plate to be faulty, shall try the same \again/ in the presence of the owner or his Assigne & of {illeg}|t|wo \or more/ other creditable witnesses & then \if found faulty as before/ it sha{illeg}|ll| be defaced or f{illeg}|o|rfeited as above, if found faulty.

|7| All unmarked plate exp exposed to sale may be seized

|7| All plate sold or exposed to sale, shall be f if unmarked or worse, shall be forfeited to him that shall \seize or/ sue for the same, & the value thereof shall be forfeited \also/ to y^e Queen. If an halfpenny {illeg} marked & an half penny w^t worse, the like forfeiture|s| shall be made by the Wardens {illeg}|&| Company. If a penny weight worse w^thout soder or two penny w^t worse w^th soder, the toucher {& persons w{illeg}}\& his Assayer/ shall be disfranchised.|&| disabled.

The Diets shall be tried at time appointed by the Queens Assaymaster in the presence of & the Company shall pay y^e deficiency to y^e crown. {sic} /the city Diet annually, the country Diets every years.\

|[|Twelve pence in the pound weight allowed for wast & remedy besides y^e fashion|]|.

A searcher \The touch Warden/ in every city (to be annually appointed by the court of Aldermen of that city) may\taking with him two or more Assistants may search/ \&/ deface all plate abounding w^th two {sic} much soder, \&/ seize all unmarked Plate exposed to sa{illeg}|le||.| & cause any other suspected plate to be assayed.