Elkington & Co. (England) silver wares

Elkington & Co., a silver and silver plate manufacturing

company, was established in Birmingham, England by George Richards Elkington

and his cousin, Henry Elkington in the 1830s. The company was renowned for

introducing commercial electroplating, having recognized the potential of using

electricity in the plating process. Prior to this, they had registered several

patents. However, it was only after acquiring the patent for Dr. John Wright's

process that they opened a new electroplating manufacturing business in

Birmingham in 1841. The company was initially named G.R. Elkington & Co.

but changed to Elkington, Mason & Co. in 1842 when Josiah Mason became a

partner. Josiah Mason encouraged the company to expand its product line to

include affordable electroplated jewellery and cutlery, in addition to their

existing large pieces. In 1861, the partnership with Mason ended, and the

company continued independently as Elkington & Co. until 1963 when it more... was

acquired by British Silverware Ltd. which later became a subsidiary of Delta

Metal Co. Ltd. Elkington & Co. received various Royal Warrants of

appointments, including an Imperial and Royal Warrant of Appointment from the

emperor of Austria. The company was highly successful and considered one of the

premier silver plating producers. One of their notable works is the electrotype

copy of the Jerningham Wine Cooler displayed at the Victoria & Albert

Museum.