Expert: Martin G Roberts - 7/26/2008

Question

"Hello I have two tankards, the first is a James Yates half pint straight sided and inside is a crown and an X. I purchased them in Broadway U.K. and the dealer obtained them in Oxford. What would you say the date could be? I was told around 1840? What is the X for as I assume that this is an early piece? What part of the U.k. could they be from?

The other tankard is a pint glass bottomed from Townsend and Compton. There is a T & c along with the symbol of a lion and one of a sword. The front has an A C, owner's mark? Townsend and Compton were from 1785-1804? The glass is original without cracks.

Thanks
Andrew C, Plymouth Meeting PA U.S.A."


Answer
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James Yates' dates were wrongly recorded for a long time. It was only in the 1980s that his true working dates were identified. He began his career in partnership with others in the late 1830s, but your piece, bearing his name on its own, dates from his working on his own account - that is, 1860-81 - or a bit later, as his trade name continued in use by successor firms until about 1900. All these firms were in Birmingham, England. Yates and his partners and successors were prolific makers, and their products are very often to be seen.

The crowned X originates as a quality mark. It may indicate 'hard' metal - that is, an alloy with no lead, consisting mainly of tin (~90%) and antimony (~10%), but by this date it may not have carried any significance.

T&C: you have your dates nearly correct (they worked 1784-1802), but unfortunately the marks you describe were, like the James Yates mark, used by successor firms into the late 19th Century. Glass bottomed mugs mostly date from the mid 19th Century and later, which would suggest the maker is most likely Henry Compton, or his successors Elmslie & Simpson or Brown & Englefield. All these firms worked in London.

AC will be the initials of either the owner (if a domestic piece), or the publican (if a pub mug).

The dealer in Broadway may have been HW Keil, who died a few years ago, though the firm and name continue in the antiques trade.

Martin
www.antique-metalware.co.uk