ASSAY OF PLATE. CHAP. XV. 



the coin of the realm, which would thus form a 

 principal part of their stock of money, whilst 

 they would retain a large quantity of gold and 

 silver in ingots or in articles of furniture or of 

 ornaments. The monarchs, as also the prelates 

 and nobles who were rich, would be as likely to 

 retain the domestic coin or utensils of the precious 

 metals as any of the foreign coined money. This 

 distribution would be caused by the state of the 

 laws then in existence. No tax was then as now 

 levied on manufactured plate, but all articles made 

 of gold and silver were to be of the same degree 

 of purity as the coin of the realm. 



Whatever was manufactured in London or in 

 some of the larger places was ordered to be assayed 

 and stamped by the warders of the craft in such 

 town ; but whatever was made in places <c where 

 no touch was ordained" was to be stamped by the 

 maker, and if found beneath the proper standard, 

 it was confiscated to the crown 1 . In this state of 

 affairs any article of plate would be of the same 

 value, in equal weights, as gold or silver in ingots; 

 and hence as occasion might require, the vessels 

 being worth no more than their weight, would be 

 on every pressing emergency readily converted 

 into coin. The workmanship of plate would in 

 that age cost but little, as luxury had not reached 

 the point in that kind of art which it soon after- 



1 Bills of Parliament, second Henry VI. cap. 12 and 13. 





