79 
head was introduced. A much more exact means of ascertaining 
‘ the age of the wares is, however, obtained from the ‘ date mark,’ 
which is a letter used in alphabetical order in repeated and 
varying series. The series doubtless commenced with the first 
charter of the goldsmiths in 1327, at least we know that one 
was current in 1336. The series in use in London are of twenty 
letters from A to U, omitting J. Other offices have not been 
so orderly in the cyclical succession of series. People who are 
‘used to the subject rarely mistake the series, and at least four 
centuries or twenty variations of the London alphabet are known. 
The year begins on May 20th, and in 1716 the alphabet happened 
to begin with a Roman capital A, and Roman capitals were thence- 
forth used for forty years in two series. In 1756 a change was 
made to Roman smalls, in 1776 to old English capitals, in 1796 
to Roman capitals again, in 1816 to Roman smalls, in 1836 to 
old English capitals, and in 1856 to small black letters or old 
English for the first time. By this arrangement the alphabet is 
spread out in four variations over eighty years. In 1876 a new 
series will probably be introduced, when, unless italics are used, 
we must, I suppose, go back to the old Roman capitals of 1716 
and 1796. An expert eye can usually perceive differences in the 
character of the lettering if not of the wares, which assures one 
against any confusion of the series ; there is, however, a resem- 
blance between one alphabet of Queen Elizabeth and one of 
Charles II., which a very sharp and experienced eye in Bath finds 
difficulty in overcoming. 
The provincial date-marks are in sad confusion. The crown 
and date were at first stamped at Sheffield as one mark, the 
Sheffield date-mark was until 1842 a letter taken at random, and 
thus the date could be ascertained only by a reference to the 
register. The Birmingham letters are 26 in number and run 
from 1772 in alternate series of Roman and old English lettering. 
The provincial series of letters then do not agree with the London, 
they vary and are too complicated for oral explanation. The 
