The Apprentice

Since time immemorial, people have been transferring skills from one generation to another through some form of apprenticeship. In the Middle Ages the craft guilds were established, applying rules for membership and, thereby, maintaining high standards of quality.

One had to work through three phases to become a member of a Medieval Craft Guild: apprentice, journeyman, and, ultimately, master. Apprenticeships lasted between five and ten years and the pay, from a master, was in board, lodging, and training. A journeyman traveled from master to master, receiving pay for work and, ultimately, displaying to others what had been learned. As this reflected strongly on the workshop where he had trained, no one was graduated and allowed to move on without having a proven skill level. During this period a journeyman created a "masterpiece" for presentation to the Guild as evidence of craftsmanship. If it were accepted by the Guild, one became a "master", who could then set up a workshop and train apprentices.

With the advent of the industrial revolution the apprenticeship system began to break down. Compensation was paid to apprentices and the journeyman phase and "Guilds" disappeared. In many crafts, trades, and occupations the training was taken over by schools where some of the skills required were taught – bits and pieces that could be learned quickly. Without the controls exerted by Guilds quality deteriorated and, as the student is paying rather than being supported, everyone is graduated, regardless of talent or skill level. The only phase from Medieval times that still exists today is the apprenticeship. As there are no longer any Guilds, there are no longer either "journeymen" or "masters" and today those designations are simply self-congratulatory.

As well, there is no such thing as a "self-taught" goldsmith, any more than there are self-taught hairdressers or surgeons. "Self-taught" is nothing more than a euphemism for "amateur".