Omar Ramsden
Omar Ramsden was born in Sheffield in 1873, the son of an electroplate and silver manufacturer where he learned the trade. By 14 years old he decided to apprentice with a Sheffield firm of silversmiths to learn production. At the same time he was also attending classes at the Sheffield School of Art, where he met his friend and future business partner Alwyn Carr. Together they traveled through Europe until they returned to England and set up a studio together in London where, in 1898, they registered their mark at Goldsmiths Hall in London. The business grew and they became well respected until, after the war in 1919 the partnership dissolved. Ramsden retained the workshop and staff and registered his own maker’s mark. The business continued to grow and Ramsden developed a distinctive house style that became heavier and more traditional than the fluid Art Nouveau of previous years. He passed away in 1939.
