Toast Rack
late 18th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Toast racks held a selection of toast on the breakfast table. They first appeared in the 1780s as middle-class dining habits were becoming more refined. They came in a variety of designs, including articulated racks, before the parallel arches you can see here became standard.
Manufacturers of toast racks took advantage of improvements in the production of fused plate wire. They made many toast racks almost entirely of sections of wire soldered together. From the 1760s metalworkers made fused plate wire in the rolling mills. They bent a thin strip of sterling silver round a circular copper ingot about one inch in diameter. The silver and copper fused in the heat of the furnace. They then drew the bar through a series of holes or 'whortles' of decreasing size until they made wire of the required diameter. Wire work items were first popular in the 1780s. Manufacturers continued to produce them well into the 19th century.
Manufacturers of toast racks took advantage of improvements in the production of fused plate wire. They made many toast racks almost entirely of sections of wire soldered together. From the 1760s metalworkers made fused plate wire in the rolling mills. They bent a thin strip of sterling silver round a circular copper ingot about one inch in diameter. The silver and copper fused in the heat of the furnace. They then drew the bar through a series of holes or 'whortles' of decreasing size until they made wire of the required diameter. Wire work items were first popular in the 1780s. Manufacturers continued to produce them well into the 19th century.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 3 parts.
|
| Materials and techniques | Sheffield plate |
| Brief description | Toast rack with muffineer, Sheffield plate, English, late 18th century |
| Physical description | Open boat-shaped base with slightly moulded edges, resting on four ball feet, arched wire divisions with the muffineer in the centre. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Mass produced |
| Credit line | The Wolseley Bequest |
| Production | Reason For Production: Retail |
| Summary | Toast racks held a selection of toast on the breakfast table. They first appeared in the 1780s as middle-class dining habits were becoming more refined. They came in a variety of designs, including articulated racks, before the parallel arches you can see here became standard. Manufacturers of toast racks took advantage of improvements in the production of fused plate wire. They made many toast racks almost entirely of sections of wire soldered together. From the 1760s metalworkers made fused plate wire in the rolling mills. They bent a thin strip of sterling silver round a circular copper ingot about one inch in diameter. The silver and copper fused in the heat of the furnace. They then drew the bar through a series of holes or 'whortles' of decreasing size until they made wire of the required diameter. Wire work items were first popular in the 1780s. Manufacturers continued to produce them well into the 19th century. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.144-1920 |
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| Record created | September 23, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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