25 member's of our WI attended a captivating visit kindly organised by Julie Lockwood.
We sat down for a fascinating presentation professionally delivered by Emma Paragreen, Curator/Librarian and Archivist.
We learned about the history of hallmarking, and why it is indeed called 'hallmarking'
To 'assay' means to test and assess the precious metal content of an item.
We were informed that it is impossible to tell the precious metal content of an item just by looking at it. Gold, silver and platinum are too soft to use alone for making jewellery, cutlery and other goods. They need to be alloyed with other, baser (and cheaper) metals for manufacturing.
The talk was followed by a tour of the area where the testing and hallmarking takes place, supporting the knowledge that we had now gained
