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Historically, the term "latten" referred loosely to the copper alloys such as brass^[1] or bronze^[2] that appeared in the Middle Ages and through to the late-18th and early-19th centuries. Such alloys were used for monumental brasses, in decorative effects on borders, rivets or other details of metalwork (particularly armour), in livery and pilgrim badges or funerary effigies.^[3] Latten commonly contained varying amounts of copper, tin, zinc and lead, giving it characteristics of both brass and bronze.^[4] Metalworkers commonly formed latten in thin sheets and used it to make church utensils. Brass of this period is made through the calamine brass process, from copper and zinc ore. (Later brass was made with zinc metal from Champion's smelting process and is not generally referred to as "latten".) This calamine brass was generally manufactured as hammered sheet or "battery brass" (hammered by a "battery" of water-powered trip hammers), and cast brass was rare.^[5]

"Latten" also refers to a type of tin plating on iron (or possibly some other base metal), which is known as white latten; and black latten refers to laten-brass, which is brass milled into thin plates or sheets.^[6]

The term "latten" has also been used, rarely, to refer to lead alloys.

In general, metal in thin sheets is characterised as "latten", e.g. gold latten, and lattens (plural) refers to metal sheets between 1/64" and 1/32" in thickness.^{[citation needed]}

Footnotes

References

Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1998, 2nd edition)
The Oxford English Dictionary (1989, 2nd edition)
Webster's Third New International Dictionary (1986)

^ "latten". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.) - "A mixed metal of yellow colour, either identical with, or closely resembling, brass; often hammered into thin sheets. Now only archaic and Historical."
^ For example: Walesby, Thomas (1868). Notes and Queries. 4. Vol. 1. London. p. 20. Retrieved 22 June 2022. [...] a compound metal called latten. It is a mixture of copper and tin, and therefore bronze.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Curl, James Stevens; Wilson, Susan (2016). Oxford Dictionary of Architecture. Oxford University Press. p. 429. ISBN 978-0-19-967499-2.
^ Brownsword, Roger (2003). Blair, John; Blair, W. John; Ramsay, Nigel (eds.). English Medieval Industries: Craftsmen, Techniques, Products. Hambledon & London. pp. 103–104. ISBN 978-0907628873.
^ Edge, David; Paddock, John Miles (1996) [1988]. Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight. London: Saturn Books. ISBN 1862220018.
^ Day, Joan (1973). Bristol Brass. David & Charles. ISBN 0715360655.

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[1] "latten". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.) - "A mixed metal of yellow colour, either identical with, or closely resembling, brass; often hammered into thin sheets. Now only archaic and Historical."

[2] For example: Walesby, Thomas (1868). Notes and Queries. 4. Vol. 1. London. p. 20. Retrieved 22 June 2022. [...] a compound metal called latten. It is a mixture of copper and tin, and therefore bronze.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[oda429-3] Curl, James Stevens; Wilson, Susan (2016). Oxford Dictionary of Architecture. Oxford University Press. p. 429. ISBN 978-0-19-967499-2.

[brownsword1-4] Brownsword, Roger (2003). Blair, John; Blair, W. John; Ramsay, Nigel (eds.). English Medieval Industries: Craftsmen, Techniques, Products. Hambledon & London. pp. 103–104. ISBN 978-0907628873.

[5] Edge, David; Paddock, John Miles (1996) [1988]. Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight. London: Saturn Books. ISBN 1862220018.

[6] Day, Joan (1973). Bristol Brass. David & Charles. ISBN 0715360655.

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