Kelham Island Museum

Old Sheffield Plate: In addition to cutlery Sheffield was also internationally noted for its skills and craftsmanship in producing fine tableware and decorative items. There were two main industries; Britannia Metal and Old Sheffield Plate. Old Sheffield Plate was a method of fusing silver on to copper which allowed the production of cheaper items which looked like silver. The method was invented by Thomas Boulsover in 1742. Of particular interest are the methods developed to mass produce the tableware and decorative items such as die stamping, spinning and fly piercing all now used all over the world as mass production methods.