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THE BIRMINGHAM ASSAY OFFICE SILVER COLLECTION
DRAWS HUGE CROWDS

A Celebration of Silver - The Birmingham Assay Office draws huge crowds
The 'Celebration of Silver' feature staged by The Birmingham Assay Office proved a huge success at the recent Antiques for Everyone show at the NEC with thousands of people visiting the stand over four days.

The Assay Office was invited to participate in the 25th, Antiques for Everyone event with a display of Silver including several significant commemorative pieces.

Curator Dr Sally Baggott selected a wide variety of articles from the private collection owned by The Birmingham Assay Office to illustrate the changes in fashion and Birmingham silver-smithing over four centuries. The pieces on display ranged from highly sought after Boulton and Fothergill pieces from the 18th century to stunning contemporary pieces by up and coming talents, Shona Marsh and Theresa Nguyen.
Visitors to the stand were extremely enthusiastic and appreciated the rare opportunity to see these pieces which are usually only accessible via privately arranged visits to The Birmingham Assay Office.

Dr Baggott said "It is wonderful to have the opportunity to show off some exceptional pieces from our collection and share them with so many people. We found our visitors to be extremely receptive and enthusiastic and we were flattered that so many people said they had come to the Show specifically to visit our stand.

The UK Hallmark is a living tradition, of which we are very proud and it is vital that it continues to protect both consumers and traders in the 21st Century. This event gave us the opportunity to remind people of its importance, and to demonstrate that the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter is still producing creative and highly skilled silversmiths." The visitors to the stand were also able to take part themselves in hallmarking demonstrations. One of those who tried their hand at hallmarking was David Barby from the BBC's Bargain Hunt programme.If you would like to see and learn more about the history of silver making in Birmingham’s historic jewellery quarter, visit The Birmingham Assay Office website for details on how to book a visit to see the full silver collection housed in the impressive Victorian splendour of The Birmingham Assay Office in Birmingham City Centre. We look forward to welcoming you of The Birmingham Assay Office in Birmingham City Centre. We look forward to welcoming you.

One visitor was kind enough to reveal his 22ct tattoo complete with the Anchor hallmark from The Birmingham Assay Office.

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