Birmingham Assay Office facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Birmingham Assay Office (Since 2015) |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| General information | |
| Type | Assay Office |
| Address | 1 Moreton Street |
| Town or city | Birmingham |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 52°29′11″N 1°55′03″W / 52.4864°N 1.9176°W |
| Completed | 2015 |
| Opened | 27 July 2015 |
The Birmingham Assay Office is a special place in the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham, England. It is one of only four assay offices in the United Kingdom. An assay office checks precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum. They make sure these metals are pure and mark them with a special stamp called a hallmark.
Back in the 1700s, it was hard for silver makers in Birmingham to sell their items. This was because all solid silver had to be checked. The closest places to do this were far away in Chester or London.
A famous businessman named Matthew Boulton and other important people in Birmingham teamed up. They worked with silversmiths from Sheffield. Together, they asked the Parliament to open assay offices in their cities. Even though London silversmiths did not want this, Parliament agreed quickly. In March 1773, a law was passed. This law allowed Birmingham and Sheffield to check silver.
The Birmingham Assay Office first opened on August 31, 1773. It started in three rooms at the King's Head Inn on New Street. Only four people worked there, and it was open just on Tuesdays. Matthew Boulton was their very first customer!
The Assay Office is run by a group of 36 people. They are called "Guardians of the Standard of Wrought Plate in Birmingham." Some of these guardians must be involved in the jewellery trade.
The special hallmark for the Birmingham Assay Office is the Anchor. The Sheffield Assay Office used to use the Crown. There is a fun story about how these marks were chosen. Meetings before the offices opened in 1773 were held at a pub in London. This pub was called the Crown and Anchor Tavern. It is said that they flipped a coin to decide the symbols. Birmingham got the Anchor, and Sheffield got the Crown. Sheffield later changed its mark to the White Rose of York in 1977.
The Assay Office offers many services. They do Hallmarking, which is stamping items with their official mark. They also test for nickel and check how thick metal plating is. They can analyze different metals and certify pure gold or silver. They also check gemstones. You can find more details on their website.
Contents
Where the Assay Office Has Been
| Birmingham Assay Office (1877 - 2015) | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| General information | |
| Type | Assay Office |
| Architectural style | Victorian Italianate |
| Address | Newhall Street |
| Town or city | Birmingham |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 52°29′02″N 1°54′22″W / 52.48389°N 1.90611°W |
| Completed | 1877 (Phipson), 1890, 1899, 1907, 1914 (Ewen Harper, architect), 1974 |
| Relocated | 27 July 2015 |
| Owner | TCN UK |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Andrew Phipson |
|
Listed Building – Grade II
|
|
| Designated: | 25 September 1972 |
| Reference #: | 1076142 |
The Assay Office first opened in 1773 in rented rooms. It moved several times over the years. In 1782, it went to Bull Lane. Then to Little Colmore Street in 1799. By 1815, it was on Little Cannon Street.
The Newhall Street Building
In 1877, a special building was made for the Assay Office. This building was on Newhall Street (52°29′02″N 1°54′22″W / 52.4839°N 1.9062°W). It became the biggest Assay Office in Europe. In 2003, it stamped 13 million items! This made it possibly the largest in the world. The Newhall Street building is now a Grade II listed building. This means it is an important historic building.
Moving to Moreton Street
In 2016, the Assay Office moved again. Its new home is at 1 Moreton Street in Birmingham.
Why the Assay Office Moved in 2015
The old building on Newhall Street was getting too small. So, a new Assay Office was needed. A spot on the edge of the Jewellery Quarter was chosen. Plans for the new building were approved in December 2012. Construction started in May 2014. The goal was to finish by 2015.
The new building cost £10 million to build. It is a two-story building made of special blue bricks. It is located on Moreton Street (52°29′11″N 1°55′03″W / 52.4864°N 1.9176°W). This new space has modern offices, labs, and meeting rooms. The Assay Office officially moved in on July 27, 2015.
Special Bricks and Symbols
The new building has unique "feature bricks." These bricks show the main hallmarking symbols used over the Assay Office's 240-year history. You can see symbols like:
- A lion for Sterling Silver
- A crown for Gold
- An orb for Platinum
- Pallas Athene for Palladium
The Birmingham town mark, the anchor, is also shown clearly.
There are also twelve bricks with the marks of important customers. These customers gave £12,000 to charity to be featured. Some of the companies include:
- Thomas Fattorini
- R. Platnauer
- Toye, Kenning & Spencer
- Cooksongold
- Deakin & Francis
- BJA (now National Association of Jewellers)
- F. Hinds
- Charles Green
- Hockley Mint
- Weston Beamor
- Jewellery Brokers
- Martyn Pugh
The new building also has a private museum. It is called the Silver Collection. The old building on Newhall Street was changed in 2016. It is now called "Assay Studios." It is a creative office space and a place for new ideas.
