Elkington Department of Science & Art Silver Plated Electrotype Tankard, circa 1870 - 1890.Elkington Department of Science & Art Silver Plated Electrotype Tankard, circa 1870 1890. Electrotyping is a chemical method used to produce a metal facsimile of an object using a mould of the original object. In 1867 fifteen Eurpean nations signed the Convention for the International Exchange of Reproduction of Works of Art, permitting Elkington to produce replicas of objects from the royal treasures of Germany, France, Russia and England. It was