Britannia metal

a white alloy of tin, antimony, and copper in varying proportions, sometimes with small amounts of zinc, lead, and bismuth, used for tableware and as an antifriction material.

Also, britannia metal.

[1810-20]

* * *

▪ alloy

      alloy composed approximately of 93 percent tin, 5 percent antimony, and 2 percent copper, used for making various utensils, including teapots, jugs, drinking vessels, candlesticks, and urns, and for official maces. Similar in colour to pewter, britannia metal is harder, stronger, and easier to work than other tin alloys; it can be worked from sheets, like silver, or spun on a lathe. The alloy is first mentioned in 1769, as “Vickers White Metal,” but it was during the 19th century that the advantages of britannia metal were appreciated. The alloy was much-used as a base for silver plating. In the 1820s the English firm of Kirkby Smith & Co., Sheffield, Yorkshire, tried to plate britannia metal by fusing it with a sheet of silver. The process proved to be both expensive and unsatisfactory and was soon abandoned. After about 1846, and following the experiments of Elkington & Company, Birmingham, Eng., britannia metal was produced as a base for objects silvered by electrolysis. The good conducting qualities, together with its cheapness and ductility, made the alloy ideal for this purpose. Perhaps the best-known manufacturer of britannia metal is J. Dixon and Sons, Sheffield, whose name, initials, or bugle mark are found on a large number of pieces.

* * *