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OLD SCOTTISH COMMUNION PLATE by The Rev. Thomas Burns, F.R.S.E.,F.S.A.Scot.

The year 1892 saw the first indepth study into Scottish silver when The Reverend Thomas Burns had published his excellent work Old Scottish Communion Plate. But Burns, who had worked tirelessly for over six years to produce this excellent early record, must surely have been very disappointed in the public's reception to his offering, for although the print run was limited to just a mere seventy five large copies and five hundred smaller copies, it appears it took several years before these editions were eventually sold.

It was only in the second half of the nineteenth century that interest really started to unfold in the subject of antique silver, prior to that time silver was seen as a useful and practical method of investing your money, something to have re-worked and re-styled when the fashions of the period dictated, and something to be melted down when the owners personal fortunes were not so good. The catylist for the way antique silver was viewed was probably two-fold, firstly, as we moved into the second half of the century was the public's new found trust in the banking system, and secondly, and perhaps more importantly, was the publication in 1853 of a paper by Octavius Morgan, somewhat longwindedly entitled 'A Chronological List of Ancient Plate; Authorities for the Table of Annual Assay Office Letters from the earliest period.' Morgan had succeeded in analysing the London date letter system, and his reproduction of the date letters enabled owners of silver to realise that some their day to day tableware was, in some cases, hundreds of years old. Improvements on Morgan's work followed in later years by such authors as William Chaffers and William Cripps and their success is perhaps what prompted Thomas Burns to do to Scottish silver what others had done to English silver.

As part of his research, Thomas Burns published this advertisement that appeared in 1888:



In 1889, In an article in 'The Publications of the Scottish Historical Society' the book was described as 'being at the press'.


Finally in 1892 pre-publication notices appeared:

Messrs. R. & R. Clark, of Edinburgh, will issue next month Old Scottish Communion Plate, by the Rev. Thomas Burns. This work has taken the author six years to compile, as it was necessary to consult original MSS., valuable extracts from which are included. It treats of the history of tho Communion cup and its different forms in Scotland, the Communion token, as well as baptismal vessels and the introduction of lavers and basins. There will also be a chapter on Scottish Hall-marks, containing chronological tables of the marks used in different burghs. The book will contain about 800 pages. The small edition will contain 53 page plates, besides upwards of 100 illustrations in the text; the large paper edition will have 33 additional page plates.

Source: The Acadamy - 2nd January 1892

The most comprehensive review that I have found so far was written up in 'The Spectator':

Old Scottish Communion Plate*

It is rightly claimed for this superb book that it is without a rival in Scottish, and almost without a rival in English, literature. In several dioceses on this side of the Tweed, steps have, indeed, been taken to make and publish exact inventories of all the Church plate. In the volume before us, this example has been followed to the extent that it gives an inventory which is believed to be complete of all the silver vessels belonging to the Church of Scotland which were dedicated for sacramental use prior to 1800, with their inscriptions, and where it has been possible, with extracts of Kirk-Session Records bearing on them. Here, then, we have an interesting book of between six and seven hundred pages, which contains a vast amount of antiquarian and ecclesiologieal information well digested, which yet somehow suggests, on the one hand, history of "The Snakes in Iceland " character, and on the other, the melancholy plaint of "In holy things irreverend thou," which was addressed to Scotland by Thomas Aird, who was not the least of her poets, and one of the most attached of her sons. The Rev. Dr. Macgregor, sometime Moderator of the Church of Scotland, who supplies this book with a vigorous and informing preface, has to admit such things as that "among the many blessings which we owe to the Reformation, a reverential regard for Church buildings and Church vessels was not one. By the shameful misappropriation of the revenues provided for their upkeep, the former, many of them gems of architecture, were left to the mercy of our Northern elements, and perished for ever; and Scotland, once fairly rich in ecclesiastical structures, is probably now, in this respect, the poorest of all ancient Christian lands. Through the total loss of all sense of their sanctity, the latter were either destroyed or sold by the local authorities for such purposes as the building of dykes and the paving of causeways." The author of this work has also to make the confession that "there is not now in the possession of the National Church one piece of plate which can be said to date back to the period anterior to the Reformation, with possibly the exception of the small chalice at Forgue." "Within thirty years of the Reformation, the old sacramental vessels had almost entirely disappeared, and an Act of Parliament was required to provide the parishes of Scotland with the vessels for administering the sacraments. These in turn were destined to disappear. The blame of these outrages has hitherto been laid at the door of the Covenanters. But Mr. Burns is able to show that after the struggle between Episcopacy and Presbyterianism came to an end in 1690, a good deal of the Communion plate remained in the hands of the Episcopalian clergy. But also, owing to its being a common custom for the patron or principal landholder of a parish to be the custodian of the plate, "quite a number of Scotch sacramental vessels are still lying in the plate-chests of the Scottish nobility." The hope is thrown out that "careful investigation will now be made, and that, wherever such vessels are found, means may be taken to have them restored to the parishes to whose use they were originally dedicated." Surely this very modest hope will be gratified.

A very large portion of this work is necessarily of local and antiquarian interest, for it is occupied with descriptions of the Communion cups which are now either in actual use or in a state of preservation. These descriptions are painstaking and accurate, and the illustrations which accompany them enhance their value. But naturally they are of supreme interest only in the eyes of such as belong to the parishes that are in possession of the plate thus preserved. Still, the history of some of them is of more than local or antiquarian interest, for it reflects in itself the chequered ecclesiastical history of Scotland. Take as example the adventures of the cups belonging to the parish of Newtyle, which date as far back as 1606 and 1610. The Rev. Alexander McKenzie, who was incumbent of the parish from 1685 to 1695, carried them off in the latter year, on being " deprived " for non-jurancy. After deprivation, he continued to minister in a meeting-house till 1710. Duringthe Rebellion of 1715, he again took possession of the church, and retained it till the forces of the Pretender were driven from Perth in 1716. Meanwhile, he kept the Communion cups. It was after the lapse of some time, and with much difficulty, that they were recovered. Another danger threatened them, however. A new cup, described in the ecclesiastical records of the period as " fashionable and in good case," was presented, or "doted," to the parish. Thereupon it was suggested that the two old vessels should be melted down, and made into " one agreeable to the other." What must be regarded as wiser counsels prevailed. The Kirk-Session resolved, in 1771, to sell the new cup, and actually received over £50 for it. These beautiful cups have, therefore, been preserved in their original form by the particular church to which they were gifted, and, as Mr. Burns says, they " reveal to the Church to-day what has been lost to many a parish through the craze for renewal of cups which prevailed in the eighteenth century." This work brings out very clearly the changes which have taken place in the shape and artistic finish of Communion cups and "tokens" during the history of the Presbyterian Church. These changes have, in the case of the cups, not always been for the better and handsomer.

Burns has, in his "Holy Fair," immortalised the social excesses and spiritual extravagances which in his time marked the celebration of the Communion. The poet is confirmed by his learned namesake who writes this book. The social excesses, at all events, were largely due to the fact that the celebration of the Communion lasted for a portentous length of time, and that it was partaken of by crowds. As an example, Mr. Burns, in his chapter on "Old Communion Customs in Scotland," mentions that in the parish of Dull, Perthshire, on June 19th, 1791, twenty-nine tables were served, and the aggregate number of communicants present was 2,361. "It was customary to calculate on the full moon for Communions; and judging from the length of the table addresses, it can be conceived that the last table was served with the moon perhaps high in the heavens. It is told of the late Rev. Dr. Black, Minister of the Barony, Glasgow, that on a Communion Sunday it was quite customary for him to return home aided by the light of a small hand-lamp. One effect of these large sacramental gatherings was the protracted nature of the day's proceedings, and the necessity of having provisions, both meat and drink, for the people." Monster Communion celebrations were not the order of the day all over Scotland, however. It was stated in 1795 by the Minister of Shapinshay, in Orkney, that the Lord's Supper had "not been administered for fifty years, and only once or twice in a hundred years," and this neglect he attributed to "the extreme ignorance of the people, the want of money for purchasing Communion elements, no Communion cups, no tables, or table-cloths, and to the church being both small and irregular, and very inconvenient for the celebx-ation of the Communion."

* Old Scottish Communion Plate. By the Rev. Thomas Burns, F.R.S.E., F.S.A. Scot. Minister of Lady Glenorchy's Parish, Edinburgh. With a Preface by the Right Rev. James Macgregor, D.D., Moderator of the General Assembly; and Chronological Tables of Scottish Hall-Marks, prepared by Alexander J. S. Brook, F.S.A. Scot. Edinburgh: R. and R. Clark. 1891.

Source: The Spectator - 4th June 1892

But, in 1895 and 1896 I have found advertisements showing that the book was still available for purchase:


1895


1896

Trev.

To be continued.

This is my torn, tattered, battered, but much beloved, copy of Thomas Burns's Old Scottish Communion Plate:




Number 58/500 and signed by Thomas Burns:



It would appear that Burns may have signed all the copies as here is an image of 191/500:



My copy has an extra personal inscription:



'To Miss Lillee
with the authors comps:
all good wishes for her happiness
June 10th 1897. Thomas Burns
I.Cor.XVI.13 Ist Clause

Can it really have taken over five years before he sold (or gave away) the 58th copy? If Thomas Burns struggled to sell his book, the only reason I can think of is that he was ahead of his time and perhaps the enthusiasm for Scottish silver research was yet to come.

Trev.

Some detail of an exhibition of Scottish Communion Plate at Edinburgh in 1886 that may, perhaps, have been the catalyst for the Rev. Thomas Burns work on the subject.

The craft of the goldsmith and silversmith is one which has had an honourable standing in Scotland for hundreds of years. Even in the earlier days of which there are recorded facts concerning it, the work of the craftsmen had much to commend it–stimulated and improved as it was, no doubt, by the introduction of skilled workmen from France, with which Scotland then had no inconsiderable connection. When we think of early Edinburgh jewellers, the name that rises to one's lips is that of George Heriot. We see him in his shop, under the shadow of St. Giles', receiving King James ; and we can bring the line down through honest burghers and traders, with their unpretentious places of business in the High Street, the Lawnmarket, or the Luckenbooths, to the time when an exodus of the silversmiths and jewellers took place into the North Bridge, before their final removal into the palatial establishments which most of those exhibiting now possess in Princes Street or George Street. It is very interesting to know that two or three of our jewellers and silversmiths of the present day are the descendants in the fourth and fifth generation of the craftsmen who flourished in the end of the last century and beginning of the present in the High Street ; and, as a genuine relic of old Edinburgh, not a few will survey with interest the huge knife and fork which formed part of the sign of Marshall & Sons, goldsmiths to the Queen, over their shop in the old Luckenbooths. Upon the work of the Scottish silversmiths for the last three hundred years, at least, there are two exhibits which throw not a little light. While interesting in that respect to the craftsmen, they are at the same time of great antiquarian value, and from that point of view appeal to the sympathies of a wide circle of visitors. These are, first, the splendid collection of old Scottish communion and baptismal plate, dating from 1533 to the year 1800, gathered together from all parts of Scotland ; and the insignia of the Royal Company of Archers, which also goes back for three hundred years. Both, along with many other very interesting articles, are displayed on the stand (623, in the Grand Hall) of Marshall & Sons, 87, George Street, Edinburgh. The communion cups form a unique exhibit. It would appear that part of them were recently shown at a meeting of the Society of Antiquaries, by Professor Macpherson, who read a paper upon them. Since then the collection has been greatly added to by the Messrs. Marshall, and is now shown, by permission of the kirk-sessions to whom the various articles belong, for the first time in public. They may conveniently be divided into three classes– (1) pre- Reformation cups, (2) cups manufactured from 1560 to 1630, and (3) cups from 1700 to 1800. The pre-Reformation cups are very few in number. Doubtless they were accounted among the " accursed things " which reforming zeal would single out for destruction. The oldest cup belongs to St. Mary's College, St. Andrews. It has a very small bowl, in shape like a champagne glass, mounted on a tall slender stem. It was made in 1533, and was presented to the Theological Faculty of St. Andrews in 1628, by William Guild, of Aberdeen. Under the same category are four silver gilt cups from Perth. One of them–which is not of an ecclesiastical pattern–is said to have been made by Benvenuto Cellini, and to have been given by the Pope to Queen Mary, who presented it to the Church at Perth. It owes its existence at the present time to its having been hidden in a grave during the troublous times of 1558. Of the cups of the second period, several retain the shape of the ordinary Mass chalice–including Carstairs, 1618 ; Dalmellington, 1633 and 1650. These were evidently made under the influence of the " Articles of Perth," when the Episcopal influence was strong in high places. But for the most part the earlier Reformation cups are of large size–as a protest, no doubt, against the withholding of the " cup of blessing " from the laity. It is rather a curious circumstance, however, that the form adopted for these cups was that of the Roman Catholic ciborium (the vessel for holding the wafer) without the cover ; and this type of vessel continued to be made for more than a hundred years, or down to 1704, when it was abandoned, no doubt on account of its unsuitableness for drinking out of. Of this pattern are the cups of St. Mary's College, St. Andrews, 1567 (made of elm root, silver mounted) ; Beith, 1628 : Dunfermline, 1626 ; Inveresk, 1632 : Trinity College, Edinburgh, 1633 ; Canongate, Edinburgh, 1643 ; Tolbooth, Edinburgh, 1642 ; Old Greyfriars, 1633 : and a number of others, including Wemyss, Dunblane, St. Andrews and Newbattle–the last mentioned of which were used by Bishop Leighton. The cups of this period appear to have been presented principally by magistrates and heritors, and a few by noblemen in the different parishes. Many bear quaint inscriptions and quotations from Scripture. On the St. Cuthbert's cup (1619) is inscribed–" For the Wast Kirke outwithe Edinburghe. I will tak the coup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord." The Canongate cup (1644) bears this inscription– " Gifted to the Kirke of the Canongate by Margaret Herring. He hath washed us from our sins in his owen blood." One of the St. Andrew cups (1569) carries the Scriptural injunction–" Bot let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of this bread and drink of this cup ;" on another–" James Carstairs and Christian Bryclen his Spous gifted thir cups for the church service of St. Andrews, ad usuam et exemption, 1671. I am the Vyn, ye are the brainches. The cup of blissing which we bliss, is it not the communion of the bluid of Crist ? " while on the Kilwinning cup (1677) is the inscription–" Communion cups, given for the perochiners of Kiloinining. Be wise as serpents ; harmless as doves." The cups from 1700 to 1800 are, with one or two exceptions, made of silver. Two from Premnay, near Insch, Aberdeenshire, are of horn, and were in use down to 1726. They are in form of ordinary drinking cups, and possibly indicate the poverty of the parish. One of the cups, of date 1700, was the property of the French Protestant Church (Huguenot refugees) in Edinburgh, and was given by their last representative, in 1818, to Trinity College Church.

In the way of general remark it may be said that during the days of the Puritans and Covenanters the cups were made of a simple pattern. Those of Biggar (1650), St. Vigeans (1667), and Birnie, are of the form of plain silver tumblers. The others have the moulded stem and goblet-shaped bowl, and in their size resemble the cups still made and used in Presbyterian churches in Scotland. The stems of some of the earliest specimens of the eighteenth century are of very fine workmanship. Most of the cups are of Edinburgh manufacture. Their dates have been ascertained by the marks of the makers and the deacons of the craft which they bear. The date letter was not introduced into the Edinburgh Hall till the close of the seventeenth century. Aberdeen also produced some excellent work, and one cup made for Craig parish, near Montrose, in 1682, is well engraved and embossed. In 1633, when King Charles attempted to conform the ritual of the Scottish Church to that of the English, some cups were procured from London, such as those of Trinity College, Edinburgh. Two cups of very handsome design, of London manufacture, come from Duirinish, in Skye. They were purchased in 1612 by Macleod of Macleod–Rory O'More–who at that time visited King James in London. It was seeing the Duirinish cups at Dunvegan that led Professor Macpherson to turn his attention to this most interesting subject of inquiry. A cup which comes from Aethsting in Shetland bears the Dantzig mark. There is also a collection of old baptismal basons and lavers (1633 to 1700), from the Canongate, Trinity College, Old Greyfriars, Tron, Edinburgh, Newbattle, and St. Andrews parishes. Many of them are wonderful specimens of the silversmith's art, hammered out of the skellet before rollers were known. The laver and bason belonging to St. Andrews, Fife, were presented to that church by Archbishop Sharp, who was murdered on Magus Moor in 1679. The laver belonging to Trinity College weighs 70 ounces, and the flagon 80 ounces. The former, which is of very fine hammered work, bears the following inscription : – " This basine was maide for the north east pariche of Edinburgh, and that at the charges and by the charitie of some honest induellers of the same, anno 1633." In the centre is a kneeling figure at an altar, " the honest induellers " who made the gift having evidently had Episcopal leanings.

It may be that the visitor who seeks only to gratify artistic taste will find but little in this collection of old sacramental cups to detain him, though some of them are of graceful form and finely membered ; but there are others in whose eyes these sacred vessels of the Christian faith, ungainly as many of them are, will assume a value as they gaze upon them, which would be no greater if they were made of the purest gold and in the highest style of the craftsman's art. For do they not cany the mind back to the time when there was but one King and one Church in Scotland ; and are they not silent but eloquent witnesses to the struggles maintained for freedom during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, of which none can speak but with feelings of emotion and pride ? May not Knox himself have used the St. Andrews cup when he was in that city ? and not less dear to the sentiment of others is the one associated with the name of the sainted Leighton. To how many communions on hillside or moor – such as the late Sir George Harvey has so graphically depicted – may not some of these old vessels have been carried, and how many of those who drank from them may afterwards have " sealed their testimony with their blood ?" Messrs. Marshall & Sons certainly deserve all thanks for having brought together this most interesting collection, which we may be allowed to suggest should certainly be photographed and " keyed " before being dispersed. The collection numbers in all ninety-three cups, from seventy-two different parishes of Scotland.

Source: Watchmaker, Jeweller and Silversmith - August 1886

Trev.

As this is the only website to appear when I typed the book name I felt this may be the best way to let people know.

I have a copy of this book. It is in decent condition. Given to the Very Rev Principal Cunningham in May 1892. I cannot find an edition number. It belonged to my uncle Alasdair Stuart Robertson who was an avid Scottish historian.

Thank you,
John Robertson