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Originally Posted by Ken Maddock
Just a taught
Is having a hallmark on the front of a silver item not a bit unusual
Regards
Ken
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Not at all. The idea of hiding or obscuring these marks is counter to their purpose, which is to show that it is indeed made of sterling silver by a certain maker and was tested by an independent authority in a particular town in a particular year.
When a silversmith or jeweler submits a piece (required by law) for hall marking, if it somehow fails to meet stringent testing (I will have to find the exact standards, if anyone is interested), the piece will be returned to whoever submitted it, smashed beyond recovery.
This system was imposed way back in the 1100's or thereabout to maintain the quality of England's coinage, as coins were melted and fashioned into finished goods which were eventually melted and turned back into coins. Silver solder is a little bit less pure than sterling, so the incorporation of it, bit by bit, into coinage adulterated the end product.
The marking system was seen as a consumer protection issue, the marks, in a sense, creating a "paper trail" tracking each work back to its maker. If a maker somehow obtains spurious marking stamps and turns out substandard goods, he will be prosecuted for fraud. This is something they take seriously, to this day.
So, if the buyer can't clearly see the marks, his confidence in the quality of the work is gone.