If you submit some information on a pewter object to us, we can do some research for you in order to identify it.
We will do an analysis concerning its origin and age, but not an estimation of its value, as it depends very much on supply and demand, as well as on the place where the object is negotiated.
To carry out an identification, the procedure is simple:
You send us, by email or postal mail (see the section "Contacts"), the information you have on your pewer object: good photographs (in numerical format ".jpg" or paper) of the object, of its touch-marks, its weight, its dimensions, its supposed origin, the geographical area in which you found it, etc
Once this information is received, we will research our databank, our resource centre and, if necessary, various libraries.
We
will then send you an answer, whether we found information or not. In the
event of success in our research, we will communicate to you the type of
data that we will have found. In case of agreement on your side and a participation
of 20 Euros per object we will forward you the details mentioned. If we
have not found any information, you will not owe us anything.
ESTAIN
How to copy the touch-marks without the help of a camera:
Pass the portion of the pewter object where the touch-mark is located above a candle flame. It must become completely black. This colouring can easily be removed by cleaning with soapy water, thus restoring your object to its original state.
Put a band of transparent adhesive tape on the touch-mark (several bands which overlap slightly if the touch-mark is large), and press lightly on the adhesive tape so that the black of the candle, deposited on the surface of the touch-mark, remains stuck on the adhesive tape.
Delicately remove the tape and stick it on a cardboard or a sheet of blank paper. You now have a beautiful reproduction of your touch-mark. You can photocopy it to remove the brightness of the adhesive tape or the overlapping due to the use of several bands.
Depending
on where the touch-mark is placed, it is also possible to try to photocopy it
directly.