A repousse brass dish made by Gawthorp and Sons of London, circa 1900.

I discovered Gawthorp and Sons recently while researching Arts and Crafts periodicals and I’m very pleased to have found a marked piece of their work. 

Thomas John Gawthorp appears to have started a business as an art metalworker and his two sons, Thomas George and Walter Edmund Gawthorp followed in his footsteps. They were evidently very successful producing metalwork in the Arts and Crafts style and by 1909 were trading as Gawthorp and Sons in London. 

T. J. Gawthorp published a manual called “A Manual of Practical Instruction in the Art of Brass Repoussé for Amateurs” (1891). The book ran to a 5th edition (1925). From the 4th edition (1907) T.G. and W. E. Gawthorp took over the authorship of the Manual. According to the front of the manual the firm were metalworkers to his majesty George V.

The dish is beautifully made with a stunning repousse design including a central owl head encircled by mice amongst foliage. The piece is fully marked to the back “Gawthorp London”. Yet another art metalwork firm from the Arts and Crafts Movement who seemed to have been forgotten over time yet would have produced a substantial body of work.