Cutlers' Hall is a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, that is the headquarters of the

Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire The Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire is a trade guild of metalworkers based in Sheffield, England. It was incorporated in 1624 by an Act of Parliament. The head is called the Master Cutler. Its motto is french: 1=Pour Y Parvenir a Bonne Foi, ...

. It is located on Church Street, opposite

Sheffield Cathedral The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Paul, Sheffield, more commonly known as Sheffield Cathedral, is the cathedral church for the Church of England diocese of Sheffield, England. Originally a parish church, it was elevated to cathedral sta ...

, in

Sheffield City Centre Sheffield City Centre (referred to locally as simply Town) is a district of the Sheffield, City of Sheffield and is covered partly by the City ward, Sheffield, City ward of the City of Sheffield. It includes the area that is within a radius of ...

History and architecture

The Cutlers' Hall was built in 1832 by Samuel Worth and Benjamin Broomhead Taylor at a cost of £6,500. It was extended in 1865–7 by

Flockton & Abbott Flockton's were a series of architectural firms in the 19th and early 20th centuries, based in Sheffield, England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its ...

, and again in 1888 by J. B. Mitchel-Withers.''"Pevsner Architectural Guides - Sheffield"'', Ruth Harman & John Minnis, , Gives details of architecture. It is Sheffield's third Cutlers' Hall, the previous buildings, which were built in the same location, were constructed in 1638 and 1725. Prior to 1638, the cutlers met in rented accommodation with tradition saying that this was a public house on

Fargate Fargate is a pedestrian precinct and shopping area in Sheffield, England. It runs between Barker's Pool and High Street opposite the cathedral. It was pedestrianised in 1973. Fargate also holds a Continental Market approximately 4 times a year, ...

, although there is no documentary evidence to back this up. The first Cutlers' Hall, a stone building with a slated roof, was built in 1638 at a cost of £155 15s 10d, of which £57 18s 4d was raised by subscription. The building was quickly found to be inadequate, having to be repaired on many occasions and in 1725, a new Cutlers' Hall was erected on the same site at a cost of £442 (). It was an attractive, narrow

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

three storeyed building with a

string course A belt course, also called a string course or sill course, is a continuous row or layer of stones or brick set in a wall. Set in line with window sills, it helps to make the horizontal line of the sills visually more prominent. Set between the ...

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

. Towards the end of the 18th century the Cutlers' Hall was used as an overspill court room as the Town Hall across Church Street could not cope with the increasing number of crimes.''"Sheffield: Its Story and its Achievements"'', Mary Walton, , Info on 1638 and 1725 buildings. The Hall's front is of the

Corinthian order The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order ...

. Behind the classical

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...

is an intricate series of rooms which reach back almost as far as Fargate. The

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

s neighbouring the Cutlers' Hall are in a similar style. One was designed by Samuel Worth in 1838, the other was completed in 1867.

Function

There is a selection of old

Hallamshire Hallamshire (or Hallam) is the historical name for an area of South Yorkshire, England, approximating to the current City of Sheffield local government area. The origin of the name is uncertain. The English Place-Name Society describe "Halla ...

knives on show inside the hall, some of which go back to the

Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...

. Many of the knives were discovered by Thames

mudlark A mudlark is someone who scavenges in river mud for items of value, a term used especially to describe those who scavenged this way in London during the late 18th and 19th centuries. The practice of searching the banks of rivers for items cont ...

s in the tidal mud of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

.National Geographic.
Gives details of Thames Mudlarks. Also on display is the Norfolk Knife, a very large pocket knife with 75 blades which was made by Joseph Rodgers and Sons at their Norfolk Street Works in Sheffield for the Crystal Palace

Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary The Crystal Palace, structure in which it was held), was an International Exhib ...

of 1851.www.tilthammer.com.
Gives details of Norfolk Knife.''"A Popular History of Sheffield"'', J. Edward Vickers, Gives history of Cutlers Hall. The building is used for many of the grandest events in the city's

civic Civic is something related to a city or municipality. It also can refer to multiple other things: General *Civics, the science of comparative government *Civic engagement, the connection one feels with their larger community *Civic center, a comm ...

and

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

life, for instance the annual Cutlers' Feast which became an annual event in 1648. For the years up to 2008, there were 372 Cutlers' Feasts, with breaks only for the World Wars and a cancellation in 1921.''"Mesters to Masters"'', Clyde Binfield,

David Hey David G. Hey (18 July 1938 – 14 February 2016) was an English historian, and was an authority on surnames and the local history of Yorkshire. Hey was the president of the British Association for Local History, and was a published author of seve ...

, Oxford University Press, Gives details of Cutlers Feast. The Cutlers' Hall is maintained by the Cutlers' Hall Preservation Trust, a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

References

External links

*
Cutlers' Feast of Sheffield, 1867''Cutlers' Hall Exclusive Virtual Walk-through Tour''
via Matterport {{coord, 53.3823, -1.46964, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB-SHF_dim:100, display=title Grade II* listed buildings in Sheffield Commercial buildings completed in 1832 1832 establishments in the United Kingdom

History and architecture

Function

See also

References

External links