Penrose Antiques

Description

We have for sale the perfect addition to any thimble collection, a good example of a large Charles Horner Dorcas thimble.

This large size 6 thimble is decorated in the shell pattern with a broad plain band and flat rim. It carries the Dorcas mark, the Charles Horner makers mark and is also marked 6 indicating the size. The Charles Horner scale for thimbles was inverted and ran from 1-13. The smaller the numerical size the larger the thimble. This particular thimble dates to some time after 1905 (See the Penrose Antiques Ltd Short Guide: Charles Horner by Morgan Denyer, ISBN 3741852503, 9783741852503, 2016).

The thimble is 1 inch (2.5cm) high and is in a very good condition with the light surface ware one would expect from a well cared for thimble dating from the early 20th century.

About Charles Horner Dorcas Thimbles.
The Dorcas thimble came about because of an intrinsic flaw in silver thimbles. Silver is soft, steel needles were hard. This silver thimbles were often punctured in use by needles causing the user a bit of discomfort. Thimbles were actually socially very important - they served as the precursor to an engagement ring, so it was important for them to be made from a precious metal. So in 1885 Charles Horner invented the Dorcas thimble which basically consisted of three thimbles in one an outer decorated silver thimble, an inner steel thimble functioning as a hard inner core and a third inner silver thimble. This trilaminar structure enabled the production of a silver thimble perfect as an engagement gift but with the properties of a steel thimble. Needless to say they took the sewing world by storm and really launched Charles Horner as a major manufacturing company. The Dorcas thimble was perceived as THE premium thimble selling at prices considerably higher than the feeble pure silver thimble.