Scottish Pewter 1600-1850

Pewter vessels, plates and measures were in everyday use in homes, churches and commerce from about 1500 until the eventual decline of pewter in the mid nineteenth century as new materials came into fashion. During its 350-year history, Scottish pewter had its own style and features that distinguished it from English pewter. Based on extensive research, this book describes in detail the characteristics of the metal, the ways in which it was fabricated, and the history of the pewterers' craft, as revealed by archived manuscripts and historical records. Full colour illustrations of all known types of Scottish pewter, including a large number of objects not previously recorded, have been taken specially for the book. The text discussion reveals regional variations, and highlights key features to facilitate identification. The names, working dates and marks of all the major Scottish pewterers are provided in an appendix, together with details of all types of their wares currently known, making it possible to identify and date any pewter object, and the town in which it was made. There is also information on the care and conservation of old pewter.The book will become the standard reference work on a neglected but important part of Scottish heritage. It will be of interest to anyone wishing to find out more of the history of Scotland's material culture and will be an indispensible resource for museum curators, collectors, fine art salerooms and antique dealers.

About the Author :
Peter Spencer Davies, PhD, FSA Scot, had a professional life as an academic (biologist) at the University of Glasgow. Now retired, he pursues a lifelong interest in English and Scottish pewter. He is a Past-President of the Pewter Society, and has had articles published in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquities of Scotland, Journal of the Pewter Society and Connoisseur magazine. He is an expert in the conservation and restoration of old pewter.

Review :
'A genuine work of love, this splendid and lavishly illustrated book is a definitive guide to Scottish Pewter wares' - Scotland Magazine; 'This is a remarkable book, only the second ever on Scottish pewter. There is a full bibliography which will aid future researchers. It will undoubtedly become the 'bible' for collectors of Scottish pewter but for those with an interest in Scottish history it provides a very readable account of the development and regulation of trade as exemplified by the pewterers from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries' - Journal of the Pewter Society; 'A genuine work of love, this splendid and lavishly illustrated book is a definitive guide to Scottish pewter wares, essentially different to those of England. Elegant, simple and above all, functional, Scottish pewter has been somewhat taken for granted over the centuries. Spencer Davies, a Past-President of the Pewter Society, provides it with a historical perspective and pedigree' - Scotland Magazine; 'Peter Spencer Davies's scholarly history of the origins and development tells the tale. Collectors of pewter from north of the border have found their bible, but those merely interested in a peephole into the domestic life of Scots between the Reformation and the age of steam might also be beguiled. Illustrated with church plate and communion flagons, pirlie pigs for collecting fines, ranks of measuring jugs used in taverns, and the homely tappit hens use, this is a record of a very characterful sort of tableware. Showing the changing tastes of church and populace, this history also takes the reader into the workshops of the artisans and increasingly astute businessmen whose goods they bought' - Scottish Review of Books; 'This study, aside from being beautifully produced and richly illustrated, advances our understanding of the production and consumption of this crucial material... (It) is a delightful exploration of Scottish pewter, updating Wood's classic study, and setting a new standard for this century' - Aaron Allen, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland