Arthur Girling Grimwade FSA[1] (10 February 1913 in London[2] – 21 November 2002)[3] was a British antiquarian known for his work in the history of silversmithing and goldsmithing, a field in which he was "highly respected"[4] and a "world authority".[5] He spent 20 years writing the reference work London Goldsmiths 1697-1837: Their Marks & Lives, which was published in 1976;[6] he also wrote numerous other reference works and scholarly articles, beginning with a 1947 article in Country Life about items in the collection of the Ashmolean Museum.[2]
In 1932, Grimwade began work at Christie's auction house (despite his father having wanted him to work at the Bank of England);[2] as a trainee, his salary was £1 a week.[7] After serving in the Second World War as a signaller, he returned to Christie's in 1946.[7] On 30 April 1954, he was promoted to director,[8] a position he held until 1979.[3] During this time, he worked with Guy Hannen,[9] and, while valuating the assets of Burghley House, discovered the artefact now known as the Burghley Nef "neglected and black in a cellar".[7]
In "the 1950s", Grimwade joined the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, where he was "the first person to be given official access to their mark books, [which were] until then a secret in-house resource;"[2] in 1984, he served as the Goldsmiths' Prime Warden.[7]
In 1953, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Antiquaries,[7] and in 1962, he was honorary curator for the Honourable Artillery Company.[10]
In 1971, he visited California, serving as a guest lecturer in silver artefacts at the University of California, Davis.[11]