Pewter

Pewter plate

Pewter vase

Pieces of pewter

Detail on a pewter fork handle from Norway, showing three scenes: the Viking King Heilag Olav, His People, and a Viking ship

Pewter is a malleable metal alloy, traditionally 85–99% tin, with the remainder consisting of copper, antimony, bismuth and lead. Copper and antimony act as hardeners while lead is common in the lower grades of pewter, which have a bluish tint. It has a low melting point, around 170–230 °C (338–446°F), depending on the exact mixture of metals. The word pewter is probably a variation of the word spelter, a colloquial name for zinc.

History

Pewter was first used around the beginning of the Bronze Age in the Near East. The earliest piece of pewter found is from an Egyptian tomb from 1450 BC. At that time, it was made as a mixture of 80-90% tin, to 10-20% copper, the exact inverse of bronze. It has been speculated that this was not a coincidence, but that it was "invented" as the inverse combination, either intentionally or by accident.^{[citation needed]}

Pewter with a high lead content became common by the dark ages, and was considered highly valuable by the 12th century, AD. At that time, only royalty, merchants, clergy, and the like tended to have or use it. Unfortunately, people were not aware of the harmful effects of lead, at that time.^{[citation needed]}

By the 17th century, the health risks of leaded pewter was becoming recognized, and alloys replacing the lead with other elements, like copper and antimony, became more common. Eventually, most common leaded pewter uses were effectively banned. .

Types

The constituents of pewter were first controlled in the 12th century by town guilds in France. By the 15th century, the Worshipful Company of Pewterers controlled pewter constituents in England. This company originally had two grades of pewter, but in the 16th century a third grade was added. The first type, known as "fine metal", was used for flatware. It consisted of tin with as much copper as it could absorb, which is about 1%. The second type, known as "trifling metal" or "trifle", was used for holloware. It is made up of fine metal with approximately 4% lead. The last type of pewter, known as "lay" or "ley" metal, was used for items that were not in contact with food or drink. It consisted of tin with 15% lead. These three alloys were used, with little variation, until the 20th century.

Older pewters with higher lead content are heavier, tarnish faster, and oxidation gives them a darker silver-gray color.^{[citation needed]} Pewters containing lead are no longer used in items (such as cups, plates, or jewelry) that will come in contact with the human body due to health concerns stemming from the lead content. Modern pewters are available that are completely free of lead, although many pewters containing lead are still being produced for other purposes.

A typical European casting alloy contains 94% tin, 1% copper, and 5% antimony. A European pewter sheet would contain 92% tin, 2% copper, and 6% antimony. Asian pewter, produced mostly in Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand, contains a higher percentage of tin, usually 97.5% tin, 1% copper, and 1.5% antimony. This makes the alloy slightly softer.

Uses

Pewter items are often found in churches. Use of pewter was common from the Middle Ages until the various developments in glass-making during the 18th and 19th centuries. Pewter was the chief tableware until the making of porcelain. Contrary to urban legend, the use of lead-containing pewter tableware was unrelated to the mistrust of tomatoes as a foodstuff in Northern Europe during the 16th century. Mass production of glass products has seen glass universally replace pewter in day-to-day life. Pewter artifacts continue to be produced, mainly as decorative or specialty items. Pewter was also used around East Asia. Although some items still exist, Ancient Roman pewter is rare.

"Unlidded" mugs and lidded tankards may be the most familiar pewter artifacts from the late 17th and 18th centuries, although the metal is also used for many other items including porringers, plates, dishes, basins, spoons, measures, flagons, communion cups, teapots, sugar bowls, beer steins and cream jugs. In the early 19th century, changes in fashion caused a decline in the use of pewter flatware; however, there was increased production of both cast and spun pewter tea sets, as well as whale-oil lamps, candlesticks, etc. Later in the century, pewter alloys were often used as a base metal for silver-plated objects.

Today, pewter is used in decorative objects, mainly collectible statuettes and figurines, game figures, aircraft and other models, (replica) coins, pendants and so on. Certain athletic contests, such as the United States Figure Skating Championships, award pewter medals to the fourth place finishers.

See also

• Britannia metal
• English pewter
• Royal Selangor
• Spin casting

References

• Skeat, Walter William (1893), An etymological dictionary of the English language (2nd ed.), Clarendon Press, http://books.google.com/?id=OHkKAAAAIAAJ .
• Campbell, Gordon (2006), The Grove encyclopedia of decorative arts (illustrated ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780195189483, http://books.google.com/?id=R8BMW6Au7pQC .
• Hull, Charles (1992), Pewter, Osprey Publishing, ISBN 9780747801528, http://books.google.com/?id=3_zyycVRw18C .

External links

• PewterBank