Once in a while we are lucky to have silver hallmarks to assist us in the identification process.  Hallmarks can often, but not always tell us when bagpipes were made, and who made them.  Because silver pieces parts can be added or removed, they are only part of the puzzle.

There were 10 major hallmarking assay offices in Scotland and England. A majority of bagpipe silver was/is hallmarked in Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Sheffield and London. At present  5 Assay offices remain in operation. Here is a list of offices and their corresponding city marks with date letter chart -

See if you can decipher the following hallmarks -

Birmingham – 1773 to Present –

Chester -1701 – 1962 –

Dublin -1636 to Present –

Edinburgh -1681 to Present –

Exeter – 1701 to 1883 –

Glasgow – 1681 to 1964 –

London – 1300 to Present –

Newcastle – 1702 to 1884 –

Sheffield – 1773 to Present –

York – 1559 to 1858 –