Mary Chawner
Mary Chawner, née Burwash, was an English silversmith.
Chawner was the daughter, sister, and wife of silversmiths;[1] her father was the watchcase maker William Burwash, and her husband, whom she married in 1816, was the spoonmaker William Chawner II.[2] The couple had a son, William, and a daughter, Mary Ann.[3][4] The elder William died on 20 March 1834 and his widow registered her own mark on 14 April the same year; five new marks followed on 25 March 1835. Like her husband, Mary was a spoonmaker as well. She gave her address in London as 16 Hosier Lane.[2] Mary was overseeing the firm until the younger William could take over; however, upon finishing his apprenticeship in 1838, he embarked instead on a religious career. Consequently the business was left to George Adams, Mary Ann's husband. He entered partnership with his mother-in-law on 3 August 1840; on 23 November that year he took full leadership of the firm.[3]
Several pieces bearing the hallmark of Mary Chawner are in the collection of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. These include six William IV tablespoons, from 1835; a William IV fish slice, of the same year; a Victorian fish slice, of 1839; and two Victorian dinner forks, also from that year.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ "Mary Chawner - Online Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmarks & Makers' Marks". www.925-1000.com. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
- ^ a b c Philippa Glanville; Jennifer Faulds Goldsborough; National Museum of Women in the Arts (U.S.) (1990). Women Silversmiths, 1685-1845: Works from the Collection of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. Thames and Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-23578-2.
- ^ a b "Mary Chawner, London - Antique Silver from". waxantiques. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
- ^ "George W Adams and the Chawner Silversmiths". 3 September 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2019.