Sheffield

As York silver becomes both too hard-to-find and too expensive to buy, there is increasing interest in early wares from the Sheffield assay office. The manufacture of silver in Sheffield did not begin until the second half of the 18th century – a direct offshoot to the Old Sheffield Plate and the cutlery industry.

“Stunning” was how auctioneer Ian Wright of Sheffield Railwayana Auctions (no buyer’s premium) described his December 7 sale. Taking £555,703 over the 550-lots, of which only six were left unsold, the sale showed how this buoyant market just keeps getting stronger and stronger.

‘Little mesters’ were the sub-contractors of the Sheffield cutlery industry – self-employed artisans who hired space in large factories to forge, grind and haft their blades, the factory owner receiving a substantial cut from their sale.

PROBABLY the greatest success story of recent years, the railwayana market fostered and virtually cornered by Ian Wright at Sheffield continues to flourish.

THE wheels may be coming off RailTrack and rail shares plunging generally, but in the older parallel world of steam things could hardly be better. Looking at sales figures of 544 lots getting away out of 550 offered and a total of £383,000 on June 16 at Sheffield Railwayana Auctions, other auctioneers can only envy Ian Wright’s decision some years ago to specialise in railwayana.