Meet the Master Engraver
Master Engraver
Przemysław Beres
Every signet ring commissioned through Signets & Seals is hand engraved by Przemysław Beres, one of the most experienced heraldic seal engravers working today. With close to forty years at the bench, he has devoted his career to traditional hand engraving at the very highest level, and every commission entrusted to our workshop passes through his hands.
Four decades at the bench
Przemysław has been hand engraving for close to forty years. His career began in his native Poland and took him to America before he settled in London, where he spent more than ten years as Master Engraver at R. H. Wilkins and Rebus Signet Rings, two of the best-known names in British seal engraving. He specialises in three closely related disciplines: seal engraving, die sinking and artistic hand engraving – cutting crests, coats of arms and monograms deep and in reverse, so that they leave a crisp, sculpted impression in wax.
His inspiration is wide-ranging: forms drawn from nature, the Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements, ancient Greco-Roman sculpture, Gothic ornament and even modern fantasy art. He has long worked by the Latin motto Ars Auro Prior – “art before gold” – and the idea that his most precious tools are his own hands.
Recognition
Awards
Przemysław is one of the most decorated seal engravers of his generation. Since 2009 his work has been recognised again and again at the Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards – the annual competition presented at Goldsmiths’ Hall in London and known across the trade as the “Jewellery Oscars”.
See all awards
The work behind the awards
Award-winning pieces
Many of these pieces show the same skills that go into every Signets & Seals ring. The gold-winning Eagle Ring hides a secret: twist it, and it becomes a seal, engraved with two angels overcoming a monster. The Lionheart desk seal captures Richard the Lionheart and Saladin in a single moment of combat, cut in reverse so that the scene comes alive in wax.
Engraving for The Championships, Wimbledon
Przemysław’s skill has been trusted far beyond signet rings. At The Championships, Wimbledon, he engraved during the 2015 Finals – working on the famous trophies in the hours when the champions were decided.
Our craft
Our approach to hand engraving
We don’t use lasers or machine engraving. Every line is cut by hand with traditional gravers, with the depth and precision a true seal needs. The result has a depth, character and individuality no machine can reproduce, and a finish that grows more beautiful with age. Read more about hand-engraved versus laser-engraved signet rings, or see how we make your signet ring.
From the bench
Selected commissions
Begin your commission
Tell us what you have in mind – a crest, a monogram or simply an idea – and we will come back to you with a quote. You don’t need to know your ring size or every detail yet.
Prefer to talk it through? Call us on 020 7993 6343, message us on WhatsApp or book an appointment at our workshop in the Goldsmiths’ Centre, London.