Cutlery
When customers buy Arthur Price of England cutlery, they are doing so because they want something better than the cheap alternative products that are available today. These products, because of their relatively low prices, tend to be sold by little more than a 'self service' process.
Arthur Price of England products however, cannot be successfully sold in this manner, as they are a major purchase. It is therefore important that customers are given the best possible service and advice by experts who can explain why these products are something to be treasured.
Unlike a lot of cutlery on the market today, Arthur Price of England products are maintaining a tradition of fine British cutlery and silverware manufacturing going back over 900 years, with many of the patterns dating back several hundred years. It should be noted that improvements in manufacturing techniques could result in minor style changes.
This is an important fact to get across to customers who are proposing to collect a set of cutlery over a period of many years. They need to be reassured that their chosen pattern will not be discontinued before their collection is complete.
By emphasising the traditional background of our Sheffield made cutlery and the transitory nature of cheap anonymous cutlery, the customer will be aware that they are investing in an heirloom with a guaranteed future.
RATTAIL - This is the oldest pattern in our range. It first appeared around 1710, during the period when modern table etiquette started to develop. The 'rat tail' on the spoon bowl was originally an applied rib to strengthen the area where the bowl joined the handle. The unusual rectangular shaped bowl enabled food to be taken off the spoon from the front or the side. This function is now fulfilled by two separate pieces, the dessert spoon and the soup spoon.
A place setting from this period would consist of a knife, a fork and a spoon. From these three pieces, the cutlery we use today has developed.
OLD ENGLISH - In its present form, Old English dates from around the 1750's. It evolved from the Rattail pattern, with the central ridge of Rattail becoming the 'pip' of Old English at the end of the handle and the 'rat tail' shortening to a 'drop' and eventually disappearing.
We are often asked why the pip is on the front of the forks but on the back of the spoons. This is because at the time in which this pattern first appeared, spoons would have been placed on a table with the bowls facing down. Set this way, the pip is visible on all pieces.
BEAD - This is the next stage in the chronology of patterns. Bead first appeared in the 1760's. Beading was a design device originally meant as a representation of pearls and was introduced by Heugenot silversmiths from the French court where pearls were a popular form of adornment.
DUBARRY - This pattern has its origins in the classical period of the 1770/1780's. It reflects the influence of designs such as Robert Adam and Thomas Chippendale who drew their inspirations from the art forms of the ancient Greek and Roman cultures which were being rediscovered during this period.
FIDDLE THREAD AND SHELL - This developed from the plain fiddle shape about 1810 with the growing trend towards more ornate forms of decoration during the Regency period.
KINGS - This is the classic Regency pattern and a direct descendant of Fiddle Thread and Shell. It first appeared in the form we use today around 1817. There have been over 30 variations of this pattern and care should be taken when matching.
The aforementioned six patterns form a chain of development from which most of the other patterns in the Arthur Price of England range have evolved.
ALBANY - A pattern from the 1880's inspired by the fluted columns of Corinithian architecture.
CARLETON AND GRECIAN - Loosely related to Albany, in that both patterns were inspired by the revival of interest in ancient Greek designs which occurred at the end of the 19th Century.
BRITANNIA - Based on the threaded Old English patterns of the 1750's. It was popular throughout Europe at the time.
HARLEY - a pattern with its origins from the Art Deco period of the 1920's and 30's.
JESMOND - This pattern represents the transition from the styles of the Edwardian era to the more modern styles of the period after the First World War. The pattern was registered in 1924.
RITZ - Based on the French Empire styles of the 1780's in the taste of the court of Louis XVI.