Fireside accessories are the tools and furnishings used around a fireplace to tend the fire, protect the room and store fuel. They include fire irons such as pokers, tongs and shovels, companion sets, fenders, firedogs and andirons, fire baskets and grates, coal scuttles, buckets and hods, log baskets, fire screens and spark guards, bellows, trivets and toasting forks.
The form of fireside accessories changed with the fire itself. Andirons supported logs on open hearths in early houses, while the move to coal in the eighteenth century brought freestanding grates, steel and brass fenders and sets of fire irons designed to match. Georgian examples are often of polished steel with fine pierced and engraved decoration, whereas the Victorians favoured brass and copper, producing helmet-shaped scuttles, ornate fenders and companion stands in great numbers. The Arts and Crafts movement introduced hand-hammered copper and wrought iron designs. Collectors look for matching sets, good weight and construction, original finishes and fenders that fit standard hearth sizes. Steel tools should be free from deep pitting, and brass should not be over-polished. Even where a fire is rarely lit, a handsome fender and fire irons complete a chimneypiece.
