Elkington & Co — Complete Silver Guide

Elkington & Co changed the silver trade more than any single workshop. In 1840 the Birmingham firm patented the electroplating process — depositing a layer of pure silver onto a base metal by electric current — and effectively invented the industry of "EPNS" (electroplated nickel silver) that supplied middle-class Victorian dining rooms for a century. Elkington also produced fine sterling silver and spectacular electrotype reproductions of historic masterpieces. Their work is highly collectable, and — unusually for a plater — much of it can be dated to the exact year.

Who Were Elkington & Co?

The firm grew out of the Birmingham business of George Richards Elkington and his cousin Henry Elkington. In 1840 they secured the master patent for electroplating, building on experiments by John Wright and others. The patent gave Elkington control of commercial electroplating for years, and they licensed the process to other manufacturers. The result was a revolution: silver-coloured tableware that looked like solid silver but cost a fraction of the price, made on an industrial scale at their Birmingham works.

Elkington also exploited the related process of electrotyping (electroforming) to produce exact copies of famous antique and Renaissance silver — many made for museums, including the South Kensington (now Victoria & Albert) Museum. Alongside the plate, the firm made genuine sterling silver hallmarked at Birmingham. Few competitors matched Elkington's combination of technical innovation, design ambition and scale.

Elkington's Marks & Date System

The crucial distinction: only solid sterling silver carries a full Birmingham hallmark (anchor, lion passant, date letter). Electroplate carries Elkington's own maker's marks and a separate firm date code, but no lion passant. Elkington was one of the few platers to date-mark systematically, so a marked piece of Elkington plate can usually be dated to the exact year — a real advantage for collectors.

Elkington's maker's mark and date code — the firm's year system lets plate be dated precisely.

The Elkington Range

Elkington's output spanned three distinct categories:

• Electroplate (EPNS) tableware — tea and coffee services, trays, entrée dishes, candlesticks, cruets, flatware. The bulk of surviving Elkington.
• Electrotype reproductions — exact copies of Renaissance and antique masterpieces, many for museums; technically extraordinary and collected in their own right.
• Solid sterling silver — hallmarked Birmingham, including presentation and exhibition pieces of high quality.
• Art and exhibition pieces — Elkington showed ambitious work at the great 19th-century international exhibitions, sometimes in champlevé enamel and damascened steel.

Crisp electroformed ornament — the technical precision that made Elkington's reputation.

What Elkington Is Worth

• Electroplate flatware / small wares: £20–£150.
• Electroplate tea service: £80–£400.
• Electroplate tray or entrée dishes: £100–£500.
• Fine exhibition-quality electroplate: £300–£2,000+.
• Electrotype reproduction (museum-quality): £500–£5,000+ depending on subject.
• Solid sterling silver, hallmarked: valued on weight plus quality — £200–£3,000+.
• Important sterling or enamelled exhibition pieces: £3,000–£20,000+.

Most Elkington is electroplate, valued on design, condition and rarity — not metal content, because the silver layer is microns thick. Solid sterling Elkington is valued like other hallmarked Victorian silver. The exception is the great electrotypes and exhibition pieces, which can be very valuable indeed.

Pitfalls

• "It's marked silver" — usually it isn't — Elkington's crown and E·&·Co marks look official but indicate electroplate. The lion passant is the only proof of solid silver.
• Worn plate — heavily worn EPNS with copper or nickel showing through is hard to sell and uneconomic to re-plate. Crisp, unworn plate is worth more.
• Re-plated pieces — modern re-plating can disguise wear but is generally disclosed and reduces originality.
• Confusing the date code — Elkington's year letters/numbers are not the same as assay date letters; they need the Elkington reference table to decode.