Trial plate

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A Trial plate was a piece of metal used as a standard in the assaying of coins to determine a coin's accuracy and fineness. [1] Plates made from various metals including copper, silver and gold were used in events such as the Trial of the Pyx as benchmarks of quality. [2] A contender for the earliest known ingot-shaped silver trial plate that dates from 1279 and is held by the Royal Mint Museum in the United Kingdom. [3]

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References

  1. Cherry 1992, p. 60.
  2. "The Trial of the Pyx". Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths . Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  3. "Trial plate or ingot". Royal Mint Museum . Retrieved 2 August 2017.

Bibliography