Pewter - Definition and Overview

Pewter is an alloy, traditionally of anywhere between three and nine parts tin, and one part lead. Modern pewter mixes the tin with copper, antimony and/or bismuth, as opposed to lead. The alloy is gray in colour and generally has a dull finish.

A pewter is also the colloquial name for any pewter-made container, especially a pewter tankard. Tankards are certainly the most common pewter artifacts, although the metal is also used for plates, cutlery and jewellery.

Use of pewter was common from the Middle Ages up until the various developments in glass-making during the 18th and 19th centuries. Mass-production of glass products has seen glass universally replacing pewter in day-to-day life.

Pewter artifacts continue to be produced, mainly as decorative or specialist items.