Not currently on display at the V&A

Hotwater Jug

1903-1904 (designed and made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The Birmingham Guild of Handicraft was established in 1890 by local admirers of Ruskin and Morris, with Montague Fordham as one of the first directors. The Guild employed about 20 craftsmen and occupied a medieval building, Kyrle Hall, in Sheep Street in Birmingham. Pressure of work forced the Guild to expand and in 1895, it became a limited company. Arthur Dixon (1856-1929), the metalworker, was the chief designer for the Guild and he wrote a summary of the Guild’s aims and ideals for <font –i>The Quest</font> (Vol. II), a quarterly magazine hand printed on the premises in Sheep Street. In 1910, financial problems were resolved by amalgamation with the metalworking firm of E.& R. Gittins, who made fine jewellery as well as the architectural metalwork in which the Guild specialised.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silver, raised with stained wooden handle and knop
Brief description
Hotwater jug, silver with stained wooden handle and knop, Birmingham hallmarks for 1903-04, mark of the Birmingham Guild of Handicraft, probably designed by Arthur Dixon.
Physical description
Hotwater jug, silver with stained black wooden handle and knop to the lid,swelling body with the domed lid attached to the body by a hinge at the rear.
Dimensions
  • Height: 9in
  • Width: 8in (maximum)
Style
Production typesmall batch
Marks and inscriptions
  • Birmingham hallmarks for 1903-04
  • Mark of the Birmingham Guild of Handicraft
Credit line
Gift of Mrs Elsie Bambridge
Object history
Acquired and used for many years by Mrs Rudyard Kipling and given to the V&A by her daughter, Mrs Elsie Bambridge
Association
Summary
The Birmingham Guild of Handicraft was established in 1890 by local admirers of Ruskin and Morris, with Montague Fordham as one of the first directors. The Guild employed about 20 craftsmen and occupied a medieval building, Kyrle Hall, in Sheep Street in Birmingham. Pressure of work forced the Guild to expand and in 1895, it became a limited company. Arthur Dixon (1856-1929), the metalworker, was the chief designer for the Guild and he wrote a summary of the Guild’s aims and ideals for <font –i>The Quest</font> (Vol. II), a quarterly magazine hand printed on the premises in Sheep Street. In 1910, financial problems were resolved by amalgamation with the metalworking firm of E.& R. Gittins, who made fine jewellery as well as the architectural metalwork in which the Guild specialised.
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.267-1961

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
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