Fireside thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Fireside

Biscuit Tin
ca.1927 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The British biscuit tin came about when the Licensed Grocer's Act of 1861 allowed groceries to be individually packaged and sold. Coinciding with the removal of the duty on paper for printed labels. It was only a short step to the idea of printing directly on to tinplate. The new process of offset lithography, patented in 1877 allowed multicoloured designs to be printed on to exotically shaped tins.

The most exotic designs were produced in the early years of the 20th century, just prior to the First World War. In the 1920s and 1930s, costs had risen substantially and the design of biscuit tins tended to be more conservative, with the exception of the tins targeted at the Christmas market and intended to appeal primarily to children. The designs, generally speaking are a barometer of popular interests.

The advent of the Second World War stopped all production of decorative tin ware and after it ended in 1945, the custom never really revived.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Titles
  • Fireside (trade title)
  • M.J. Franklin Collection of British Biscuit Tins (named collection)
Materials and techniques
Offset litho printed tinplate
Brief description
Biscuit tin, `Fireside', tinplate, offset litho printed, made for the Co-operative Wholesale Society by Hudson, Scott & Sons, Carlisle, 1927.
Physical description
Biscuit tin, rectangular with rounded corners, the lid decorated with a grandmother reading a story to her grandchild beside the fire with a kettle on the hob; the sides decorated with images of kittens at play.
Dimensions
  • Height: 6.8cm
  • Width: 12.2cm
  • Depth: 9.1cm
Credit line
Given by M. J. Franklin
Object history
M.J. Franklin Collection of British Biscuit Tins.
Summary
The British biscuit tin came about when the Licensed Grocer's Act of 1861 allowed groceries to be individually packaged and sold. Coinciding with the removal of the duty on paper for printed labels. It was only a short step to the idea of printing directly on to tinplate. The new process of offset lithography, patented in 1877 allowed multicoloured designs to be printed on to exotically shaped tins.

The most exotic designs were produced in the early years of the 20th century, just prior to the First World War. In the 1920s and 1930s, costs had risen substantially and the design of biscuit tins tended to be more conservative, with the exception of the tins targeted at the Christmas market and intended to appeal primarily to children. The designs, generally speaking are a barometer of popular interests.

The advent of the Second World War stopped all production of decorative tin ware and after it ended in 1945, the custom never really revived.
Bibliographic references
  • Michael Franklin, British Biscuit Tins, London, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1984, ISBN. 0905209621
Collection
Accession number
M.119-1983

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
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