Issue 29 - October 2012

The GLASS SELLERNewsletter of The Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London

Issue Twenty Nine October 2012

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In May this year, led by the MasterVivian Bendall and the Mistress Angela

Mathew, 64 Glass Sellers, partners andfriends visited Bath and Wells.

Bath! Bath chairs, Bath buns, BathOliver biscuits, two thousand year oldRoman Baths and Bath Abbey.

And then, Wells – the smallest City inEngland with its most magnificentCathedral, and adjoining Bishop’s Palace,dating from the 13th Century.

With Wookey Hole Caves, CheddarGorge and Glastonbury Tor all near at hand.

Day OneThursday 17 May 2012

Our Party, arriving at the Hilton Hotel,were greeted by the Master and Mistressand we foregathered at 1.30 p.m. to beginour Bath and Wells experience – a visit tothe Roman Baths and Bath Abbey.

From Roman Baths, 2000 years old to…

The Roman Baths Guide, Dyan, was apassionate enthusiast for all things Roman,

and Bath! Her detailed knowledge andanecdotes kept our group enthralled andwanting to know more about the SacredSpring, the Roman Temple, the BathHouse, and the array of artefactsdiscovered over the years.

Hot water at 46C rises at the rate of240,000 gallons every day – and has beendoing so for thousands of years. Thewater is mineral rich and supplies amagnificent Bath House. A great Temple,dedicated to Sulis Minerva – a Goddesswith healing powers – stands next to thespring. They attracted visitors from acrossthe Roman Empire.

…a younger Abbey site –age 1000 years!

Following the Roman Baths tour wevisited Bath Abbey a short walk away.

Inside Bath Abbey

The Glass Seller Page 2

Founded in 1499, this is a wondrousbuilding both inside and out withspectacular fan vaulting ceilings, delicatetracery and decoration.

The whole building is filled with naturallight. There are 52 windows taking up80% of the wall space. At the East end thewindows were blown out during WWll. All

the fragments were meticulously swept upand stored. The fragments were later usedto rebuild a new – design window in the1950s. The current window depicts 56scenes from the life of Christ.

Outside, one fascinating detail on eitherside of the West Door, shows Angelsclimbing up or coming down sculpturedladders.

From High Tea to…

After the visits, the group met at thenearby Pump Room Annexe.

High tea was served with scones, cream,jam, and a delicious array of cakes andsandwiches. We knew it was ‘High Tea’ –no crusts on the sandwiches!

…Dinner for 64

At 7.30 that evening we attended aReception and Dinner in the Hotel.

It was an excellent first evening meal

accompanied, as usual, by an equallyexcellent selection of wines.

And so to bed.

Day Two, Friday 18 May

A Cathedral, Scissor Arches, and a warm lunch…

Today was cold but after a goodbreakfast we set off by coach to visit WellsCathedral and the Bishop’s Palace.

On arrival, we divided into groups,were allocated to our Guides andcommenced the tour.

The Cathedral Church of St Andrew wasbuilt between 1175 and 1490 on the site ofan earlier Church established in 705 AD.Its West Front aspect is absolutely aweinspiring, built in the (then) new Gothicstyle. About 300 of its original medievalstatues remain. Internally the beauty ofthe building rivals that of Bath Abbey. TheJesse Window (c 1340) above the HighAltar is considered to be among the bestthree windows of its period in the Country.

Scissor Arches were constructed in theten years from 1338. They were requiredbecause unstable foundations had resultedin movement causing long cracks to

appear in the Tower walls. The ScissorArches solved the problem, stabilising theTower and making the building safe. Thiswas an early ‘engineering’ solution toovercome a real danger.

In the North Transept is the WellsCathedral Clock, the mechanism of whichis the second oldest in Britain to survive inits original condition and still in use. TheClock strikes every quarter and joustingknights rush around above the clock whilethe Quarter Jack bangs out the QuarterHours with his heels.

The day had gradually got colder and,after the Cathedral tour, we were delightedto enter the Under Croft Restaurant forour soup and sandwich lunch. One or twoof our more active Members were seen tobe performing gymnastic exercises to warm up!

…A Bishop’s Palace, hungry swans and a missing roof.

A visit to the adjacent Bishop’s Palace(c1206) and its 14 acres of gardensfollowed. The moat surrounding the Palaceis home to a number of Mute Swans trainedto ring a bell when they want to be fed.

The Gate House (c1341) has adrawbridge leading to the Palace entrance.

The Palace is a mixture of living andworking space, but the Great Hallalongside is in ruins after a Bishop in the1550s sold the lead from the roofs. Thatsort of theft is evidently not a modernphenomenon!

Internally, the Chapel (c1275) is at theheart of the Palace. Its windows are largeand the early English Style tracery in themis exceptional. Amongst many otherexhibits, the Long Gallery was popular aswas an original Glastonbury Chair(c1504). The only other surviving originalis in St John’s Church, Glastonbury.

Well watered gardens, the River Sheppey…

In the Gardens, St Andrew’s Well issupplied from St Andrew’s Spring at therate of 40 gallons per second! The waterflows into the moat and discharges over a

Wells Cathedral, West Wall

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weir into the River Sheppey. This well(with others) are the Wells from which theCity takes its name.

Our visits to the Abbey and Cathedralhad given us a surfeit of beauty,amazing architecture, and historicalsignificance to ponder on during thereturn journey to our Hotel.

…and an Italian Night out.

For our evening meal we walked to theMartini Restaurant. The atmosphere wastremendous, with members sitting in smallgroups in all its nooks and crannies. Thewaiters bustled about dispensing menusand wine. The hubbub was ever increasing,reducing, of course, when a superb arrayof food was served. The culinary standardswere excellent, and the service humorous,efficient and friendly.

It was a fun evening with a great deal ofbanter – the Master was gently teased andpresented with a petition expressingsurprise that no one else was allowed todrive his new Ferrari motor car!

We departed the Martini Restaurant ingood order, and walked back to our hotel.Where was that Ferrari?

It was still cold but no one seemed tonotice!

A walk, a Dandy and a three arch bridge…

Day Three, Saturday 19 May

Bath is a compact city and best exploredon foot – and so we did exactly that! Threeguides joined us at the Hotel and wedeparted in separate groups for a two hourperambulation of most of the key sites andsights of the city.

In the 18th century, Beau Nash, a dandyand fashion leader, was appointed Bath’sMaster of Ceremonies in 1704 and played aleading role in making Bath the mostfashionable resort in England. The presentfaçade and main entrance of the imposingTheatre Royal (haunted by a Grey Lady)

was Nash’s first house. He died in 1761. TheCorporation funded a lavish funeral but hewas buried in an unmarked pauper’s grave.There is a memorial to him in Bath Abbey.

One of the highlights of our tour (amongmany) was Pulteney Bridge, with its threearches spanning the River Avon. It is one ofonly four bridges in the world with shopsacross the full span and on both sides.

…A famous landmark, an obelisk and a surfeit of history

During the course of our walk we sawone of the World’s best known landmarks –the Royal Crescent which consists of thirtyhouses, including one hotel and No.1which is open for public viewing.

The beauty of the local golden colouredBath stone is a delightful feature of all thebuildings we saw. Queen’s Square, has anobelisk commemorating a visit byFrederick, Prince of Wales, in the early

eighteenth century. In addition, the Circus, the Assembly

Rooms, the Thermal Bath Spa, wherepeople bathe in naturally heated springwaters, the Garrick’s Head public house,all enhanced the City and collectively withthe Abbey helped to ensure that the City ofBath was added by UNESCO to its WorldHeritage List in 1987.

We said farewell to our guide at theAssembly Rooms for a welcome cup of tea!

The afternoon was spent at leisure.

Sumptuous surroundings, amusement, companionship…

A Black Tie Dinner.Sir Thomas Holburne amassed a

collection of over four thousand objectsduring his lifetime. After his death in 1874his sister, Mary, bequeathed his collectionto the people of Bath. A further twothousand five hundred objects have sincebeen added. Our Dinner destination was

the Holburne Museum.The Georgian Grade One listed building

was restored and a ‘brand new, modern,glass extension’ completed in May 2011.

Drinks and canapés were served in theDavidson Ball Room Gallery whichsparkles with silver, renaissance bronzes,maiolica and 18thC dining ware. What asplendid start to the evening.

We were called to Dinner in theBrownsword Picture Gallery where wewere surrounded by stunning 18thCportraits by Gainsborough, Stubbs,Zoffany and Ramsay. It was a veritablefeast for our eyes.

Our recently appointed Chaplain, TheVery Reverend Philip Need, The Dean ofBocking, said Grace:

‘Though some have come by trainand some by carTo take the waters of the blessed SpaWe ask thee, Lord, to keep us in thy pathAnd fill us all with blessings here in Bath;And whatever here this night may come to passWe dedicate ourselves again to Glass;And whether gathered here in joy or follyWe give thee thanks for this year’sMaster’s Jolly’.

With a beginning as described above,our formal dinner could be nothing but aresounding success. And it was! The meal,wines, conversation, toasts, speeches allcombined so that the evening passed in asteady procession of enjoyment.

The Prime Warden spoke of ourexperiences during this Jolly andreminisced that, 25years ago, the firstJolly had 15members comparedwith 64 attending thisone. He announcedthat the next Jollywill be based inTunbridge Wellsfrom the 9th to the12th of May 2013. u

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On Tuesday 18 September 2012, awonderful sunny autumn day, thirty

of us met at the gates of BuckinghamPalace and were ushered in by the smilingand delightful staff. We were metby Anne Haworth who hadguided tours for me before.

What a guide she was, theminutest detail was not missedout as her encyclopaedicknowledge gave us insight tothe treasures we saw. To say thetour was truly glittering wouldnot be an understatement. Thechandeliers, the gilt andormolu, the amazing glasspanels and false ceilings, thepaintings, the furniture... It was

all totally splendid. We also saw the queen’s diamonds

exhibition which was brilliantly curated,with the diamonds twinkling in thesubdued light.

We took champagne on theterrace overlooking the gardensand then used our twenty percent discount to purchase,mostly tin plates decoratedwith royal emblems in theshop. We took dinner in theRoyal Overseas League,wonderfully organized by RayArmstrong. This was a fittingending to what had been anamazing visit.

Judy Mewburn

The Master and Mistress, Vivian andAngela, were presented with a decanterand glasses to mark their year in office.

Prime Warden, Guy Harrison, proposedthe toast to ‘The Master and Mistress’ whichwas heartily echoed by all those present.

The Master responded. First thankingthe Prime Warden for his invaluablesupport and then commenting on thethemes of ‘Family’, ‘Fun’ and ‘Future’ Thefirst two are well catered for by the Jollyand similar events and the third has beenaddressed by the Think Tank Review. Theresults of the review will be published andimplemented in the coming months aimingto produce a more modern and forwardlooking Livery Company.

The Masterwelcomed PastMaster VincentEmms as our newClerk and wishedhim and PastMaster Jo Thomasevery happinessfor theirimpendingmarriage inOctober.

The Master thanked Mistress Angela forher tremendous support during their yearof office.

The evening ended and we returnedto our hotel.

…and utter contentment!

Day Four, Sunday 20 May

So to church…

Bath Abbey owes its present form to theBishop of Bath, Oliver King who, in 1499dreamt of angels ascending to heaven andsome descending. On the West Front,angels are depicted on ladders. Thoseascending are doing so ’through the virtueof humility’ and those descending‘through the vice of pride’.

Glass Sellers assembled and walked tothe Abbey Church, entering between thestone angels, for the Choral Matins Service.

The Very Reverend Philip Need, Dean ofBocking, preached the Sermon – his firstas our Chaplain.

After the service we went our variousways having experienced

a happy, successful, wellorganised Jolly.

John Spencer

…and a safe journey home

Glass Sellers at the Palace

A very happy Master and Mistress The sun shone, the sky was blue, and,some fourteen Glass sellers were met

at Kew Gardens by our host, ClareFairbrother and our Guides for the day, JillTaylor and Daniel Barker whoaccompanied us through the wonders ofKew – and wonders indeed they were.

The specimens within the Glass Houseswe visited were remarkable and ourexperience was enhanced by thedistinguished experts who showed usaround the Temperate, Evolution, Palmand Alpine Houses.

A delicious Lunch followed, each of usrelaxing comfortably with our Hosts andeach other. The tour, continuing through thePrincess of Wales Conservatory, broughtthe visit to a hugely memorable conclusion.It saw the Glass Sellers being sized up bythe famous resident Chinese WaterDragons. We gazed and they gazed, andwhile we were impressed, we’re not surethey were! Can a Water Dragon become anhonorary Glass Seller? They have suchgravitas, style, and imperturbability. TheClerk is thinking about it……………

Glass is an outstanding example of amaterial in the service of humankind.Kew shows what glass in the service of theplanet can do.

Our planet needs plants, and plants needKew for their survival, conservation anddevelopment. Without glass structures,Kew could not exist; their fragility at Kewshows in the Temperate House which isthe subject of a major restoration appeal.As Glass Sellers we were never moreaware of how special ‘our’ material is.

Thank you Kew for a splendid day. Youhave gained many friends.G Raymond Armstrong

Visit to theRoyal BotanicGardens Kew5th July 2012

The Glass Sellers at Kew

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The Think-Tank Group commissionedby the Master in December 2011

presented its report to the Court in June2012. The Master wrote to all members ofthe Livery in July with a summary of itsrecommendations that the Court hasalready approved. He also announced thatthe Report in full, together with the resultsof the Survey conducted last March, arenow available to download from theMembers’ area of the Company’s web site.

Assistant to the Court William Knocker,Chairman of the Think-Tank, said that theprimary focus of the Group’sconsiderations was on the benefits andexperiences of the Membership, which inturn have a great impact on therecruitment of new Liverymen. “At theheart of this was the question of whetherwe need to strengthen the Fellowshipacross the Livery, and if so how we shouldachieve that. That took us along a path ofmany topics, supported by findings andinsightful comments from the Liveryarising from the Questionnaire”.

Improving Communications in theLivery is a consistent theme in the Report(84% of Survey responses agreed weshould move to using email wherepossible), and the Clerk and his Office hasagreed to begin a programme immediatelyto introduce many of the Report’sproposals in this area.

Many respondents perceived a need to

strengthen both Glass and Charityactivities and the Think-Tank consideredoptions to support that opinion. Oneproposal is to establish a GlassCommittee, and the Court has askedLiveryman Richard Katz to help set thatup straightaway.

Another proposal endorsed by the Courtis to invite the current MembershipCommittee to become a newly re-structured Livery Committee, withresponsibility for enhancing fellowshipacross the Livery, facilitating new (andold) members’ participation in the Livery,as well as encouraging recruitment. AnEvents Sub-Committee to the new Livery

Committee will continue to manage ourInformal Social Programme, the need forwhich had a resounding 86% support inSurvey responses.

83% consider the Formal SocialProgramme was ‘just about right’.However, while wishing to maintaintraditions, there was strong support forboth an occasional black tie event, as wellas a more relaxed supper to help buildfellowship and friendships across theLivery in more informal surroundings.These recommendations the Court alsoendorsed and, with other proposals, will beintroduced into the annual programmefrom next year.

The Master commented that one of thebenefits of the wide-ranging Report is tobring together in a single document manyinterrelated topics the Court and Liveryhave been debating over many years. Headded “Many other of the Report’srecommendations will be considered bythe F&GP Committee and other respectiveCommittees over the next few months. ButI would like to record now the Court’sappreciation to William and his Think-Tank members – Past Masters MartinEverett and John Whiteman, andLiverymen Maria Chanmugam, Nick Grayand Richard Katz – for their significanteffort and a comprehensive and quicklycompiled Report”.William Knocker

LIVERY SURVEY AND THINK-TANK REPORT

WilliamKnocker

It was a great honour and a privilege tobe able to attend the Diamond Jubilee

luncheon at Westminster Hall. It was a rareopportunity which was worthwhile and agreat experience to be one of the fewpeople chosen to represent not only mycompany but all of the glass industry.

The event was astonishing and was aonce-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I wasamazed to win the Apprentice of theYear awarded from the WorshipfulCompany of Glass Sellers which

enabled me to be invited to such aprestige event. I was in disbelief when Ireceived my invitation to the luncheonas it was a remarkable achievement tobe able to share a meal with the Queenand the royal family.

Not many people have seen the Queenand the royal family up close but thanks toBeatson Clark and the WorshipfulCompany of Glass Sellers, I was able tobecome one of those few people.Matt Lee

Matt Lee, Beatson Clark


Vicky Higginsonreceiving her award

The Glass Sellers’ Charity Fund – Supporting Glass Art

RUNNER-UP –GLASS SELLERS ART & CRAFT AWARD2012Sally Fawkes & Richard JacksonObservational ExchangePhotography: Richard Jackson.

WINNER –GLASS SELLERS

ART & CRAFTAWARD 2012

Colin ReidUntitled Colour

Saturation R1646. Photography:Artist’s own.

Vicky Higginson Atarashii ChadoPhotography: David Williams

WINNER GLASS SELLERS ART & CRAFT STUDENT AWARD 2012

Colin Reid and IPM Martin Scarth

The Biennale


The BiennaleAs part of the Fifth International Festival

of Glass, the British Glass Biennale washeld in the newly refurbished Ruskin GlassCentre in Stourbridge from 24th to 27thAugust 2012.

The Biennale is the UK’s PremierExhibition of Contemporary Glass. Froman initial entry of 209, seventy Artists wereselected for consideration. Competitionwas fierce and the jury of Glass Sellers,advised by Rennie Bramah of DudleyCollege, were set a difficult task to selectthe winners.

Immediate Past Master Martin Scarthawarded the prizes as follows:l Winner of the 2012 Art and Craft

Award (£5,000) Colin Reid for untitled

Colour Saturation R1646.l Runner Up of the 2012 Art and Craft

Award (£1,000) Sally Fawkes andRichard Jackson for ObservationalExchange.

l Winner of the 2012 Art and CraftStudent Award (£1,000) to VickyHigginson for Atarashii Chado.

Dudley College AwardsFollowing the Biennale Awards, the

Dudley College Awards were alsopresented by Immediate Past MasterMartin Scarth. l The Frederick Stuart Memorial Award

made to a Post Graduate Studentcurrently working at Dudley waspresented to Hannah Woods byRosemary Gorton, a Member of theStuart Family.

l A Glass Sellers Award is givenannually to an Undergraduatecurrently studying at Dudley. The Winner was Leanne Round.

Guild of Glass EngraversThirty years ago Senior Past Master

Michael Nathan, aware of the formation ofthe Guild of Glass Engravers, proposedthat the Glass Sellers Charity Fund shouldsponsor the Guild’s First NationalExhibition, and also that an annual trophy

be instituted for presentation to the bestFirst Time Exhibitor.

This year the Best First Time ExhibitorTrophy was presented to Hiroko Shoamifor her work entitled ‘Mekira’. TheTrophy was presented by its initiator,Senior Past Master Michael Nathan!

The Portland Glass ProjectIn December 2011 the Charity

Committee of the Worshipful Company ofGlass Sellers received a request forfunding from the International Festival ofGlass. The Funds were to enable an Artistto work with groups of School Children tocreate a series of 'contemporary Portland

Vases' to be exhibited atthe International Festival ofGlass.

Charlotte Hughes Martinwas the Leader and Artistfor this Project and hasrun engraving and designsessions with each of thethree participating schools:Pedmore Primary, Saint Mary's Primary,Kings winford, and Kingswinford School.

In each case Charlotte gave an overalltalk and presentation about the project tothe whole school. This was followed byspecific design talks and demonstrationsto individual classes.

Each School had three practicalengraving sessions with a total of 270children having 'hands on' experience.

80 designs were produced and thenvetted by Charlotte, who short listed fiveimages per school. These were displayedon Facebook and the winners selected by

public vote. The culmination of

the project is here to beseen – 3 vases – thewinner from eachschool and the othershort listed designs onpanels, ultimately fordisplay in theparticipating schools.

We hope this will bethe first of many linkswith the InternationalFestival of Glass.

‘Mekira’ by Hiroko Shoami, Best First Time Exhibitor

Hannah Woods being presented her award byRosemary Gorton, representing the Stuart family.

Charlotte Hughes Martinand Barbara Beadman

Glass in Society


200 Years ago – almost to the day!

Liveryman Edgar Mobbs pursues a keeninterest in the history of the City and

the Glass Sellers Company. In the courseof his researches he came across thisfascinating account of the installation ofthe First Glass Seller to be elected Sheriffin 1812.

John Blades was the first Glass Seller toserve as Sheriff of London and Middlesex.

He was a Glass Seller from Ludgate Hillwho had joined the Company as a Freemanby Redemption on 28 June 1779. Hebecame a Liveryman on March 20 1783,joined the Court of Assistants onDecember 16 1784, became RenterWarden for 1787/8, Upper Warden for1788/9, and Master in 1789/90. He alsoserved a second term as Master in 1808/9.He was elected to become the SeniorSheriff with Michael Hoy from theIronmongers Company as the JuniorSheriff for the year 1812/13.

The Court of the Glass Sellers met at theAntwerp Tavern in Threadneedle Street onThursday 24 September 1812 to make allthe necessary plans for the variousinstallation ceremonies, and to embracethe opportunity of offering their testimonyof respect and esteem for the public andprivate character of their court memberand Past Master John Blades.

At 11.00 a.m. on Monday September 28,one of the City Marshals attended upon theCourt at the Antwerp Tavern to regulatetheir procession to the City of LondonTavern to meet the Sheriffs at breakfast.All were dressed in their Livery Gownswith the Clerk in his black silk gown. Theprocession was preceded by the Marshalwith bearers carrying aloft two silkbanners emblazoned with the Arms of boththe Company and the Sheriff.

They were accompanied by the BeadleThomas Oliver wearing two sashes of blueand yellow fringed with gold edging.There followed the Clerk, AnthonyHighmore, in a chariot by himself, thenthree coaches with the gentlemen of theCourt, next the Prime Warden Thomas

Stubbs with the Renter Warden RobertElliott in a coach by themselves, andfinally the Master John Goldham, in achariot by himself. On arrival, the Clerksof both the Glass Sellers and Ironmongersintroduced their members, and then theSheriffs, their Chaplains, several Aldermenand both companies breakfasted together.

Afterwards, the Procession reformedand was led by the colours of the twoLivery companies with the Beadles withscarves and staves, and with a band ofmusic, the Ironmongers taking priority.On arrival at Guildhall the two companiesformed lines from the entrance to the stepsto pay their respects to the Lord Mayor,Claudius Stephen Hunter, the Court ofAldermen and the late Sheriffs who tooktheir seats at 2 p.m. The Common Criermade the Proclamation and the newSheriffs took the usual oath of Office andtheir oaths of supremacy and allegiance,and both signed the Great Book. Theywere then clothed in their mazarine gownsand their gold chains were put upon themby the Sword Bearer. They then took theirseats on either side of the Court ofAldermen. The whole procession asbefore then moved forward to Justice Hallin the Old Bailey, where the new Sheriffsmet the previous Sheriffs to receive thetransfer of all accounts, prisoners, effects,etc. During this time, the two Companieswere shown into the Lord Mayor’s Parlour.Afterwards, the whole Procession returnedin the same order to the City of LondonTavern where a sumptuous dinner wasprovided by the Sheriffs.

Two days later, on Wednesday 30September 1812, the Livery reassembledat the Antwerp Tavern and againproceeded to the City of London Tavernfor breakfast with the new Sheriffs and theIronmongers at 12 noon. At 1.00 p.m. thewhole Procession moved forward toGuildhall, this time with the Glass Sellers

leading. The Procession passed theentrance to Guildhall where they werejoined by the Lord Mayor, Court ofAldermen, City Officers in State, and allthen proceeded to Blackfriars Bridge. Thetwo Companies embarked for Westminsterin the Fishmongers Barge, which had beenborrowed for the occasion. The LordMayor was in the City Barge, preceded bythe Water Bailiff in his boat. TheCompanies Barge effected the first arrivalthat they might be ready to receive theLord Mayor.

At Westminster, the processionreformed as before and moved to the Courtof Exchequer. Once there the GlassSellers lined on the right hand side fromthe Bar to the steps of the Court, with theIronmongers on the other side. The LordMayor, together with the Recorder JohnSilvester at his right hand, and with theSword and Mace Bearers, who invertedtheir respective insignia, was followed bythe Aldermen as he approached the Bar.

The former Sheriffs with their UnderSheriffs were sitting within the Bar, andthe Cursitor Baron of the Court ofExchequer Francis Maseres Esq has takenhis seat on the Bench. The Recorder thenintroduced the new Sheriffs to the Court interms appropriate to their high character ofopulence, loyalty and integrity, and theCourt, having recorded their appearance,the Cursitor Baron administered the usualoaths to the late Sheriffs and officers.

The Cryer then called upon the City ofLondon to do suit and service to the Kingfor the premises which they held as tenantsand occupiers of a piece of waste groundcalled ‘The Moors’ in the County of Salop.The Senior Alderman, having assentedtook a small hatchet with which hechopped a stick in twain upon the table.

Afterwards he took a bill hook withwhich he likewise chopped another stick intwain. The Cryer then similarly calledupon the City of London to do suit andservice to the King as tenants andoccupiers of a tenement called ‘The Forge’

Guildhall

Justice Hall, The Old Bailey

The Industrious’Prentice Grown Rich & Sheriff of London – Hogarth

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held In Capite in the Parish of SaintClement Danes, Middlesex. Thehorseshoes and bag of hob nails lying onthe table were then counted and recorded.(There appear to have been six horseshoesand sixty one hob nails. After the count,the Remembrancer would state “GoodNumber”.) The Lord Mayor then retiredbackwards, bowing twice to the Court, andthe Cursitor Baron then withdrew.

The Glass Sellers and Ironmongers thenreturned to their Barge followed by the CityOfficers as before.

At Blackfriars, the procession reformedand proceeded to the City of London Tavernfor a sumptuous Entertainment. The LordMayor presided at the upper table with theCourt of Aldermen and the City Counciland officers, while the Junior Sheriff tookthe right hand table, the Senior Sheriff theleft hand table, and there was a central tablefor their other friends.

This closed the inauguration of the newSheriffs. More hospitality and splendour,more urbanity, more munificence, moreelegance and profusion of meats and ofwines, nor more good order mingled withfestivity never before graced theseceremonies in the City of London.

John Blades continued to support theGlass Sellers Company. On 27 September1821 he made a munificent donation of200 guineas to more than double the TrustFund set up by the Will of the late JamesHayes who had died earlier that same year.John Blades went on to serve the Companya third time as Master for the year 1824/5.He also became the Father of the GlassSellers Company.

He died on 10 November 1829, just 50years after he had joined as a Freeman.The Court received the news of his deathwith feelings of profound sorrow, andrecorded their deepest expressions ofregret at the loss of a gentleman whomthey were proud to have numbered as oneof their members.Edgar Mobbs

Westminster Bridge by Canaletto

The Clerk, Past Master Vincent Emms,writes;

I very much regret to advise you that PaulNortham died on 6 August 2012. He wasMaster of the Company in 1992-1993.

A Memorial Service was held at St JamesGarlickhythe on Saturday 3 November2012 at 2.30pm.

We offer our sincere condolences to hiswidow Nan, his son Piers and othermembers of his family.

John Spencer, the current Editor of theGlass Seller magazine was appointed in

May 2010. He agreed to a period of threeyears as Editor and would step down inMay 2013. That final date has beenextended until November 2013.

We are, therefore, commencingour ‘search for an editor’ to findJohn’s replacement.

We publish the magazinetwice a year, nominally inMarch and September but theseare not hard and fast deadlinesand do become ‘moveable feasts’according to circumstances.

Traditionally our editors have beenmembers of our Livery and the object of thisnote is to ascertain whether we have any

possible successors within our ranks.John has stressed that he is willingto help a newcomer to settle intothe role and points out that he hadno experience whatsoever as anEditor when he took on the task.

If any of you like the idea oftackling the job, please contactme for an initial chat.Email:[email protected]

Phone: 020 8502 1958.Vincent Emms, Clerk.

Following PhilipNeed’s

appointment as ourChaplain, Bishop JohnWaine wrote:

The last thing that Idid before I retiredwas to install PhilipNeed as Dean ofBocking in the Diocese of Chelmsford.Such occasions are always exciting, andpeople turn up in large numbers to meettheir new parish priest, hoping and prayingthat he is just what the parish needs. Thatwas sixteen years ago, and in those yearsPhilip’s work in the church and in thecommunity has borne much fruit and theparish thrives.

Of course I knew it would be so,because Philip worked with me asBishop’s Chaplain for five years. He wasmy right hand man, I saw him every day.He was a great colleague, interested inpeople, good to have around and with adelightful sense of humour.

It was therefore not difficult for me whenasked to recommend someone to beconsidered as Chaplain of the Glass Sellers’Company. The Company means a greatdeal to me, and I know that I have handedover to someone who will serve us well.

It pleases me to see how, with hiscustomary enthusiasm, Philip has alreadyset about getting to know people. It willtake him a while to remember everyone’sname, but it should not take all that long forhim to feel at home amongst us. Let’s makesure that he enjoys the fellowship for whichthe Glass Sellers’ Company is renowned.John Waine

The VeryReverend Canon

Philip Need, Dean of Bocking

Golden Window, Bocking

Obituary

Search for an Editor

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In June 2012 the Master received aletter from Rear Admiral C J Hockley

in which the Admiral confirmed theaffiliation of HMS ARTFUL, an AstuteClass Submarine, with theWorshipful Company of GlassSellers of London. So we havean affiliate to replace HMSSCEPTRE following herdecommissioning in December2010. The affiliation is a jointone with the WorshipfulCompany of Glovers. The needto have joint affiliation is due tothe reduction in the number ofSubmarines in service or underconstruction. Simply put, ‘there’s more ofus than there is of them’!

The news of the affiliation was greetedwith delight since we have been linkedwith the ‘Silent Service’ continuouslysince 1982 when Past Master PhilipWilloughby initiated the idea.

To consolidate our early links withARTFUL, a party of five Glass Sellersand four Glovers, visited BAE Systems atBarrow in Furness on the first and second

of August 2012. HMS Artful is the second of this name

(the first was launched in May 1947) andis the third of seven Astute Class

Submarines to be built at Barrowpreceded by HMS Astute and HMSAmbush.

The Astute Class submarine is thelargest, most advanced, and mostpowerful ever operated by the RoyalNavy.

Our Party was guided by Brian Benn,BAE’s Customer Relations Manager andsaw our Submarine in sections beingfitted out and awaiting further weldingoperations. Even partly finished, the hull

was gigantic, menacing, amazing – wetook a lift up to reach its top and lookdown on the (almost minute) workersbelow.

Brian gave a very detailedcommentary on what we saw,assisted by members of thecrew who accompanied us.Time scales are enormous –

approximately 9 years fromend of design to completion

of build. For Artful, the finalmajor weld to finish herhull should be completedin a few months.

HMS Artfuldimensions. Length 97

Metres, Beam 11.3metres,Draught 10 Metres,

Displacement (surfaced) 7000 Tonnes,Speed 30 Knots.

Our rapid visit to Barrow in Furnessculminated in a Dinner with Glovers andGlass Sellers intermingled with severalcrew members. It was a good, interestingand convivial start to our affiliation.John Spencer

The 2012 Ravenscroft Lecture wasgiven by Simon Cottle, a Senior

Director of Bonhams Europe responsiblefor all the Company’s European offices andbusiness development on the Continenthaving previously worked for Sotheby’s.

William Beilby Senior was a goldsmithand jeweller in Durham, but in 1757 hewas declared bankrupt, and the familymoved to Newcastle upon Tyne to start

again. William seniordied in 1765, and hisson William anddaughter Mary workedas enamellers for localglass makers.

They were nevermanufacturers of glass,solely decorators.

Brother Ralph emerged asthe business head of the family,but another brother Richard diedshortly afterwards.

William was fascinated by thethriving glass industry

around him, and becamethe first man in England

to fire enamels into glass so

that they became virtually part of the glassitself. He taught Mary to paint inenamels, but she never matched the skillof her brother.

As he achieved greater recognitionWilliam was commissioned to createglasses with fictitious heraldry, or eventssuch as the launching of a ship, and he alsoworked on punch bowls and decanters.

Today his work is greatly prized, and in

November 2011 a Prince William ofOrange Glass Goblet sold for a record£117,000 at Bonhams.

Also in 2011 three Beilby glasses boughtat a boot sale for 40 pence each fetchednearly £19,000 at auction in Chichester.

Today it is gratifying to note that adescendant of the family, Amber Beilby, isa Liveryman of the Company. Vincent Emms

Ravenscroft Lecture – William Beilby

HMS Artful

The Master, Vivian Bendall, The Speaker, Simon Cottle,Senior Past Master, Michael Nathan.

Are you able to connect these two? Ifnot, here are some more clues:

cardboard tubes, molten metal and Persil.If these don’t help, then back to basics.

Glass is insoluble in water. If it were not,your window panes would dissolve when itrained and, even worse, you would beunable to fill a glass, let alone raise it.

But water glass, as its name implies, isglass dissolved in water! Most glasses aredesigned to be chemically resistant andinsoluble but this particular glass leavesout those compounds used to impartdurability, being made only from soda andsand. The glass is melted, formed intolumps and then dissolved in hot water tomake a viscous liquid. This liquid is stickyand is used as an adhesive for cardboardtubes and fibre drums where it impartsrigidity to the finished product.

An unusual adhesive application forwater glass was to seal paper cartridges

used in black powder revolvers made bythe Colt Manufacturing Company from1851-1873, a period which covered theAmerican Civil War. Inevitably,technological progress made papercartridges obsolete with the developmentof the brass cased cartridge.

As water glass is a glass-based adhesive,it is also used as a binder for refractoryproducts and as a constituent in high-temperature cements.

One important feature of water glass isthat, when treated with chemicals, it canchange from a liquid to a solid. Foundriescast molten metal into sand moulds. Whensodium silicate solution (another name forwater glass) is used to bond the sandgrains, the mould would be as weak andwobbly as a sandcastle. Not an idealcombination when pouring molten metal.

However, if the mould is given a whiff ofcarbon dioxide, the sodium silicatesolution instantly becomes hard, providingstrength and heat resistance for the mould.

By mixing chemicals with water glass,the time taken for it to change from aliquid to a solid can be controlled. Thiswas to prove particularly important at theFukushima nuclear plant. The tsunamistruck on 11 March 2011 and in thefollowing weeks there was much frantic,dangerous and courageous work done tocool and stabilise the reactors. On 2 April,

it was noticed that highly radioactivewater was leaking from a cable storage pitinto the sea. Concrete was immediatelypoured into the pit but the leakagecontinued. The next day the top of the

cable trench was broken open and polymerwas poured in, this too failed to seal theleak. Two days’ later, water glass,designed to slowly harden, was injectedinto holes drilled around the pit. Within 14hours the leak had stopped.

Water glass has many uses includingmanufacturing Persil. Indeed, that is howthe product gets its name: Per (fromperborate, which is a bleach) and sil (fromsodium silicate). Before the widespreaduse of refrigerators, it was also used forpreserving eggs – but had I told you that atthe beginning, you would have knownwhat the article was about! John SavageWith thanks to PQ Corporation, Warrington, for technical advice.

Glass is insoluble in water... isn’t it?Colt paper cartridges 1851 Fukushima nuclear accident 2011


Dangerous andcourageous work to

stabilise reactors

Colt 45with papercartridge

This truly unique project, initiated byRenter Warden Andrew Parmley, has

had a long and exciting journey. A Ring ofeight bells, to commemorate HerMajesty’s Diamond Jubilee, was gifted tothe Royal Family in January 2012 andgiven the title ‘Royal Jubilee Bells’.

It is worth remembering that one of thebells was given by The Glass Seller’sCompany thanks to the generosity ofindividual donations from seventy onemembers of our Company and some goodfriends of the Livery.

Each of the eight bells is named after amember of the Royal Family – ours is‘Charles’, named for the Prince of Wales.The Master, Vivian Bendall and theImmediate Past Master, Martin Scarthwere present at Whitechapel Foundry tosee the bell being cast accompanied bytwo of the donors who had won a draw(from a Loving Cup) to be there.

The Barge leading the Queen’s Diamond

Jubilee Thames Pageant was a ‘BelfryBarge’ from which all eight Bells rang out– seen and heard by 1.3million peoplealong the Thames and probably billionsmore on television worldwide.

Earlier that day, Sunday the 3rd June, StJames Garlickhythe, was full and buzzingwith anticipation about the ThamesPageant. After the Service, some stayedfor lunch, whilst others left for othervenues beside the river.

Past Master John Hitch, who wasclosely involved with our Bell, had,exactly one year earlier, reserved roomsfor that weekend with Thames-side Lunchand uninterrupted river views of thePageant for his 19 strong Family Group(ages from 5 weeks to 92 years) – it wastruly memorable family fun.

On the 17th June, the Master attendedthe Service of Dedication of the Bells at StJames, conducted by our Past Chaplain,Bishop John Waine. Each of eight Bells

GS29 Ring o’ Bells and the Royal Pageant

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Glass SellersProgramme 2013

(Glass Sellers’ functions are in bold print)Thursday 12 December 2012

Installation Dinner at Stationers’ Hall andEvensong at St James Thursday 21 February

Ravenscroft Lecture – Stationers’ HallMonday 4 March 2013

Inter-Livery Bridge CompetitionDrapers’ Hall

Thursday 7 MarchCourt and Livery Dinner – Vintners’ Hall

Friday 15 MarchUnited Guilds Service – St Paul’s Cathedral

Wednesday 1 MayGSMD Gold Medal Competition (vocalists)

date tbc by GSMD9 – 12 May

Master’s “Jolly” to KentTuesday 14 May

Sons of the Clergy ServiceSt Paul’s CathedralWednesday 22 May

Inter Livery Clay Pigeon ShootHolland & Holland, Northwood

Tuesday 11 JuneEvensong at Southwark Cathedral and

Dinner at Glaziers’ HallSunday 16 June

City Livery Concert – The BarbicanMonday 24 June

Election of the Sheriffs (Guildhall) and Luncheon

Thursday 26 SeptemberCourt and Livery Dinner – Stationers’ Hall

Monday 30 SeptemberElection of the Lord Mayor (Guildhall)

and LuncheonTuesday 29 October

Annual Banquet - The Mansion House Friday 8 November

Silent Ceremony – GuildhallSaturday 9 NovemberLord Mayor’s Show

Thursday 12 DecemberEvensong at St James Garlickhythe

and Installation Dinner – Stationers’ Hall

The Glass Seller is published by the Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London. www.glass-sellers.co.uk © The Glass Sellers Company 2012.

Acknowledgements: October 2012. The Glass Seller wishes to thank those who have contributed articles for this issue. Their names appear at the foot of the articleor in the body of the script. Photographs were supplied by G Raymond Armstrong, HMS Artful, Maria Chanmugam, Guy Harrison, John Hitch, Andrew Jones,Richard Katz, St. Mary’s Primary, Kingswinford, John Savage and John Spencer. Our thanks to the Clerk whose active support makes possible the productionof this Magazine. The design and artwork is by Andrew Jones to whom we are extremely grateful. Printed and distributed by Crossprint on the Isle of Wight.

New to the Glass Sellers’Company01.03.12 Elected Freemen:

Dr Emma Stanton, Andrew Brockett,Barry Clark

14.06.12 Elected Freeman:Christopher Capredoni

14.06.12 Elected Liveryman:Andrew Brockett

27.09.12 Elected Freemen:Mark Holford, Mark Palmer-Edgecumbe

27.09.12 Elected Liveryman:John Benson

It was a thrilling evening of music anddrama when the Master, the Master’s

Lady and the Prime Warden attended theAnnual Gold Medal Competition at theBarbican. The Renter Warden, as theMaster of the Worshipful Company ofMusicians, was also present.

The Gold Medal Award was founded bySir H Dixon Kimber in 1915 and the runnerup receives the Glass Sellers Prize.

The Concert opened with ‘Hidd’n Blue’ acomposition by an ex pupil, Francisco Coll.It was described in the programme as ‘3DMusic for a Virtuoso Orchestra of the 21stCentury’. I was somewhat nervous but whatan incredible piece of music it was – onecould see how the Orchestra loved the work.Undoubtedly, Francisco Coll is a name towatch out for.

The first Competitor of the evening wasJonathan Chan, who charmed everyonewith his interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s‘Violin Concerto in D, op 35’. He gave anenthusiastic and well plannedperformance and can look forward to apromising career. The Judges placed him3rd, but that was nothing to be ashamed ofas the standard of all the performances

that evening was so high.The Runner Up was Ben Schoeman, whose

interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s Piano ConcertoNumber 1, op 23, literally had the Orchestraleaping out of their seats during the performance,and I do not know who enjoyed it most, theaudience or the orchestra. It was spellbinding.We were all delighted that he won the GlassSellers’ Prize, and will be coming to perform forus at one of our dinners in the immediate future.Ben is already an accomplished performer in hisnative South Africa, and prior to coming to theGuildhall School he had been trained in SouthAfrica and Italy.

The Winner of the 2012 Gold Medal was23 year old Ashley Fripp, who is British, andhas performed in many venues in the UK.He graduated last year from the GuildhallSchool with a First Class Honours Degree,and chose to perform Liszt’s ‘Totentanz’ –paraphrase on the Dies Irae for Piano andOrchestra. He gave a very accomplished andprofessional performance of this difficultwork, and the Judges were obviously (andrightly) attracted to it. The music chosen bythe other performers may have had morepopular appeal but there could be no doubtthat Ashley was the best performer on thenight. The five Judges who includedEdward Gardner, the English NationalOrchestra’s acclaimed Music Director,commented on the incredible standard of theperformances and congratulated all theMusicians, equally praising the GuildhallSchool Orchestra.

The Glass Sellers Company are delightedto be associated with the Guildhall Schoolof Music and it would be good to see ourassociation with the School strengthened inyears to come. Guy Harrison

Guildhall School of Music 2012 Gold Medal Competition

was placed in line down the centre aisle ofthe Church, decorated by the GardenersCompany with two scallop shells, and twocloves of garlic. All eight bells werelinked together by a long blue silk ribbon– representing the River Thames.

The Bells were subsequently hung in thebell tower and on July 22nd the PatronalFestival at St James was celebrated withthe sound of the Bells being rung in public,on dry land, for the first time ever, fromtheir permanent home.

The congregation heard from Dickon Love,organiser of the new ring of bells, learnedsomething about the expertise of bell ringing,and heard each bell rung individually –including our own ‘Charles’.

It has been 133 years since a completering of bells was placed in a City Church.So, at all future Livery Services at StJames, you will be greeted by a peal of theRoyal Jubilee Bells from our very own‘Charles’ and his seven relatives. John Hitch

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Issue 29 - October 2012