Assayer

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An individual who specializes in testing and determining the composition or quality of materials, particularly in the context of metals and minerals
2. A professional responsible for evaluating and analyzing samples to establish their value, especially in metallurgy and gemology
3. A person engaged in the examination and evaluation of materials to ascertain their composition and worth, often related to precious metals and gems

Etymology: An assayer is someone who tests the purity of precious metals, and the word's history follows the trade itself. It came into Middle English as "assaier" and "assaiour", borrowed from Anglo-Norman "assaiour", which was itself built from the verb "assay" with the agent ending "-er". So the word names a person by what they do, much as "baker" or "driver" does. The verb underneath it, "assay", carries the older sense of trying or testing something, and the assayer's job was to put a sample of metal under scrutiny to see how much precious metal it really contained. Coins and plate were routinely adulterated, so a trusted tester gave merchants and mints a way to check what they were handling. The word therefore moved from a general idea of trial to a specific, official role.