Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 9.djvu/411

ON THE ASSAY MARKS ON GOLD AND SILVER I'LATK. .'317 statute was ordained by the Parliament : — " Also it is advised and concluded by the Lords of the articles, that for the eschewing- of great damage and scathes that our Sovereign Lord the King's lieges sustain by the goldsmiths in the minishing the fineness of the silver work, that henceforth there be in each burgh of the realm where goldsmiths are, one deacon, and one searcher of the craft, and that each goldsmith's work be marked with his own mark, the deacon's mark, and the mark of the town, of the fineness of twelve penny fine, and when there is any such work within the fine- ness, the work to bo broken, the workman to make up the availe of the fineness required, and to be punished at the King's ^ill." In 1489, another statute to the same efi'ect was ordained : by this, each goldsmith was to have one special mark, his works were to be of the fineness of the new works of silver of Bruges, and there was to be a deacon of the craft, who was to examine and mark the works. Again, in 1555, " Forasmuch as there is great fraud and hurt done unto the lieges of the realm by goldsmiths that make silver and gold of no certain fineness, but at their pleasure, by which there is some silver work set forth of such baseness of allo}^, viz., of six and seven penny fine, against the public weal of the realm, it is ordained that no gold- smith make in work, nor set forth either his own or other men's silver, under the just fineness of eleven penny fine, under the pain of death and confiscation of all their goods and moveables ; and that every goldsmith mark the silver work with his own mark, and with the town's mark : Also, that no goldsmith set forth either his own or other men's gold under the just fineness of 22 carats fine, under the pain aforesaid." By these statutes it will be seen that there were three marks, the goldsmith's, the deacon's, and the town's mark ; but nothing to indicate the years. What these marks were is not any where indicated, and they most probably' were numerous. It will, therefore, be a good object for some Scottish antiquary to work out the marks of his own country, by an examination of ancient pieces of Scotch plate, as well as the records of the various burghs. There is, however, one mark which I have occasionally met with on ancient plate, resembling a letter X or a St. Andrew's cross, surmounted by a crown exactly resembling the Scottish crown in shape.