A fantastic rectangular ashtray modelled in 'wood grain' textured silver with a removable glass liner. By influential mid-century silversmith Gerald Benney, hallmarked London 1972. Originally made as a centenary commemorative gift; engraved on the base, 'London Merchant Securities Limited 1873 - 1973'.
Adrian Gerald Sallis Benney was born 1930 in Hull. He trained at Brighton College of Art and the Royal College of Art. He was initially influenced by the purity and minimalism of Scandinavian design and his designs through most of the 1950s reflect this. It was not until the 1960s that he fully embraced texture. He is probably most renowned for what became known as, 'Benney bark finish'; apparently a technique he discovered accidentally. Whilst working on a cup, he inadvertently picked up a hammer with a damaged head and imposed a pattern on to the surface of the silver; his signature look was born!
