Robert Edgar Stone
known professionally as R.E. Stone was an English silversmith and was the son of a carpenter. Born in 1903, he was famous for its handcrafted style and the work he produced for several notable clients.
Stone nearly lost an arm in an accident as a child. This greatly reduced the amount of professions that he could realistically enter into.
R E Stone Central School Of Arts
When he was 14 years of age, Stone commenced his training at the Central School of Arts in London. During his time with the school, he enjoyed a scholarship from the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. This enabled him to travel through Europe and also train in Paris.
He was made Liveryman for Goldsmith’s in 1939,and was noted for stamping his work with a facsimile signature.
The Robert Stone Workshop
He founded his own workshop in 1929. A number of key silversmiths worked under him when he worked at Garrick Street in London.
His protégés included his daughter Jean as well as Ian Calvert, and was one of the key figures of the revival that silver was enjoying at the time.
R E Stone’s Prestigious Clients
Some of R.E. Stone’s most famous work includes the various products that he manufactured to commemorate George V’s Silver Jubilee in 1935. These items included products such as caddy spoons and bowls, and the items all featured cast crowns. The designs were subsequently adapted to commemorate the Coronations of Edward VIII in 1936 and George VI in 1937.
A number of the products were sold by Asprey as well as Wilson and Gill. He also produced various items for Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Co. Ltd. He also produced a fruit stand for Hamilton & Inches of Edinburgh. In the 1960s, he could count Christopher Lawrence as being amongst the various craftspeople that worked under him.
Handmade Works in an Era of Mass Production
The majority of works that Stone produced at his workshop were made from sterling silver. His business was forced to close during WWII, a period in which he was involved in torpedo testing in Scotland. Business resumed prosperously after the war when he returned to Garrick Street, taking on several apprentices before the workshop was closed in 196.
Stone’s work is distinctive for being completely handmade, even during eras when similar works were being mass-produced. Some of his major commissions included various works for churches, including a cross and candlesticks for Temple Church in London.
Robert Stone A Sculptor of Precious Metals
Stone also produced a rosebowl for the Institute of Metallurgy, to be presented to HRH Princess Margaret. This bowl was made from the precious metal palladium. He also made numerous Russian-influenced spoons in the 1960s.
After he closed his workshop he continued to work from his Dumbartonshire home on the west coast of Scotland, with pieces being assayed in Edinburgh. Stone died in 1990, having married and Dorothy Roe in 1929 and fathering two daughters, Jean and Christine, who was a painter. Inevitably, Stone’s work continues to fetch vast sums of money today.
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