of rectangular form, the gadrooned rim with turned edge and scroll and foliate quadrants, the concave field with an oval foliate plaque, the central cartouche engraved with a crest, simple reeded edged swing handle, raised on four ball feet, 29 x 20cm Footnote: Old Sheffield Plate, sometimes referred to as ‘fused plate’ or 'OSP' was the accidental invention of Thomas Bolsover, a Sheffield silversmith, in 1743. While trying to repair the handle of a customer's knife, he overheated it and the silver started to melt. When he examined the damage, he saw that the silver had fused with the copper fittings. He found that the two metals behaved as one when he tried to repair it again, even though he could clearly see the two different layers. By 1770 he was able to produce sheets of copper with silver fused to both sides, which behaved in the same way as solid silver sheet when making items, but for a fraction of the cost. With the advent of electroplating in the 1840s Old Sheffield Plate went out of production and today these items with their distinctive ‘turned edges’ (to hide the copper inner) are now much sought after by collectors.