The famous Hunt and Roskell firm was descended from the firm of Storr and Mortimer of which the eminent Regency silversmith Paul Storr became a partner in 1822. Some 14 years later Paul Storr’s nephew, John Samuel Hunt, became a third partner and when Storr retired in 1838 the firm became known as Mortimer and Hunt. Upon the retirement of Mortimer, Robert Roskell became a partner and the firm changed its name again to Hunt and Roskell. During the Great Exhibition of 1851 Hunt and Roskell exhibited, among other impressive naturalistic pieces of plate, two candelabra with their stems and branches consisting of a vine on a base of Indian architecture, dessert stands of flowering naturalistic form with Indian figures and ice-pails inspired by the lotus and enlivened with Indian plants. These pieces were part of a service made as a testimonial to the Earl of Ellenborough in recognition of his work in India and, although not within the reach of the ordinary man, were the sort of examples which were important since they influenced the design of future silver and plated goods in general.

Antique Collector MagazineThe designs which Christopher Dresser produced for electro-plated wares were in direct contrast to contemporary ideas on style. Reactionary in their simplicity and functionalism, their clear, uncluttered outlines stand out from the styles. The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, has an electro-plated Dresser tea set which he designed for James Dixon and Sons. Today there is nothing extraordinary about it but how it must have amazed people then. It is based on a spherical shape devoid of decoration. The sugar bowl, milk jug and teapot all stand upon three simple feet, the latter two having neat functional handles which break away completely from the scroll form or anything derived from this outline, emphasising instead a vertical grip which follows the spherical shapes of the vessels. The set is beautifully designed even by modern standards and could quite easily have been produced within recent years. In fact it bears the Registry mark for 1880, when our forefathers were enamoured with everything opposed to it in design and ornament.

It also says much for James Dixon and Sons that they were prepared to sponsor such progressive ideas, as were Hukin and Heath who produced a wide miscellany of domestic electro-plated articles and secured the services of Christopher Dresser to advise them on design. Under his guidance they produced some beautifully simple and well-proportioned objects for everyday use in the home. The interesting point about Christopher Dresser was that, while he had very definite and original ideas on design, he never veered from his intention of being a commercial designer. He produced designs for Elkingtons, too. He once wrote that ‘if the designer forms works which are expensive, he places them beyond the reach of those who might otherwise enjoy them’. His designs for electro-plated wares certainly did not fall into such a category.

While items by eminent designers may be out of the price range of many collectors, it is possible to hunt around and discover examples which show their influence, or to specialise in collecting pieces after a certain style. Such styles might include Japanese-inspired pieces, the vogue for which was intense throughout the domestic scene and elsewhere and for which, among others, Christopher Dresser in the late 1870s opened an Oriental warehouse in Farringdon Road ‘for the exhibition and sale of decorative objects of all kinds imported from

Japan, China and India‘; Adam or Louis Seize wares, very popular during the 1880s and echoing in some ways the neo-classical period of the late eighteenth century, incorporating acanthus leaves, swags and bows with much engraving and centre shields, particularly on teapots and larger pieces of domestic wares; a revived rococo, very much apparent during

The last two decades; and pieces showing certain Huguenot-style forms of decoration of the early eighteenth century, emulated with much enthusiasm.

The most important influence at this time was, of course, that of Art Nouveau, with its easy flowing lines of grace and elegance which found favour with, among others, the comparatively new firm of Liberty and Company. Art Nouveau, with its sinuous lines emulating the lotus or the lily, is hard to define since its inspiration in general was derived from an unlikely combination of Japanese and mediaeval ideas. It proved eminently adaptable to practically all vessel shapes and numerous other types of domestic objects. In a more modified form it influenced electro-plate nearly as much as sterling silver and can still sometimes be seen in the lines of pieces produced as late as the early 1920s. I noted just such a piece prior to the time of writing in the form of an Art Nouveau electro-plated cigarette box in a shop some 30 miles from London. It was an excellent buy at under £10. A set of electro-plated fish knives and forks was also seen at the same time bearing a series of impressive marks which a cursory glance might take to be sterling silver hallmarks, which might have fooled the unwary.

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