Heritage Brass: The Complete Guide to the M.Marcus Range

Supplied by Trade Door Handles, trusted UK supplier of architectural ironmongery since 1976, with quick nationwide delivery.

Heritage Brass is the solid brass door furniture brand made by M.Marcus, and one of the widest ranges of matching ironmongery available in the UK. Door handles, door knobs, hinges, window furniture, door accessories and kitchen and cabinet hardware are all made in the same finishes, so you can choose one look and carry it through every room in the house.

We have supplied the range for many years at our Kendal and Carlisle showrooms, and we now carry nearly 8,000 Heritage Brass products online. This guide brings the whole range together: who makes it, what is in it, how the finishes differ, how to choose the right fittings, and where to find each part of the range on our website.

Heritage Brass is made by M.Marcus, which was established in April 1940 as a traditional brass founder. M.Marcus began selling door furniture under the Heritage Brass brand name in the 1980s, and the range has grown since then to cover almost every piece of architectural hardware a home needs. The door furniture is made from hot forged brass, which gives a strong, dense part with a good surface for plating and polishing.

Alongside it, M.Marcus makes several other ranges that we stock and that match or complement it:

• Sorrento door hardware - contemporary lever handles and accessories.
• York Security locks and latches - sash locks, deadlocks, tubular latches, bathroom locks and night latches in matching finishes.
• Black Iron Rustic and the Tudor antique black iron collection - malleable iron hardware for cottages and period homes.
• Rustic Dark Bronze and Rustic Pewter - solid bronze and white bronze hardware with living finishes.
• Read our cottage door handles guide to compare the black iron, bronze and pewter ranges.

The range is easiest to understand by product type. Each section below links to the main collection and, where we have written one, to a detailed buying guide.

The heart of the range is lever handles. Choose door handles on rose for a clean look on modern and period doors, or door handles on backplate for latch, lock, bathroom and Euro profile versions on one plate. Traditional homes often use mortice knobs instead of levers, and our mortice knobs and rim knobs guide explains which latch and size to choose. You can see every design in door handles and knobs.

Not sure whether you need a rose or a backplate? Read our guide to door handles on rose or backplate.

Restoring a period home? Read our Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian door handles guide.

Front doors and internal doors are finished with knockers, letter plates, house numbers, escutcheons, thumb turns, bolts and hooks. The door furniture accessories guide covers each item in detail, including sizes and fixing heights, and the full range is in door accessories collection.

Solid brass butt hinges and other door hinges are made in the same finishes as the handles, so the hinge knuckles match the levers. Read the Heritage Brass hinges guide for sizes and fitting advice, or see all brass door hinges.

Casement fasteners, casement stays, sash fasteners and sash lifts complete the windows. The window furniture guide explains each type, and the full range is in brass window furniture.

The kitchen and cabinet range includes cabinet pull handles, cupboard knobs, cup pulls and edge pulls in the same finishes as the doors. See the kitchen and cabinet hardware range, the brass cabinet pull handles and the cup pulls.

For finishes, sizes and measuring tips, read our brass kitchen handles guide.

Pocket doors need flush pulls and edge pulls rather than lever handles. Our pocket door handles guide explains the options, and the pulls are in brass flush pulls.

Finish choice is the main reason people choose Heritage Brass. Every finish is applied to a solid brass base, and the same finish is used across door, window and cabinet hardware. You can compare them all on our Heritage Brass finishes page, or go straight to a finish:

• Satin brass - a soft, brushed gold with a low sheen.
• Antique brass - a darker, aged brass, popular in period homes and cottages.
• Polished brass - the classic bright, mirror-like gold.
• Unlacquered brass - bare brass that darkens naturally with use.
• Matt bronze - a dark, warm bronze over brass.
• Matt black - a modern black finish.
• Polished chrome and satin chrome.
• Polished nickel and satin nickel.
• Satin rose gold - mainly in kitchen and cabinet hardware.
• Combination finishes - two-tone designs.

The finishes fall into three groups. Lacquered finishes, such as polished brass and antique brass, have a clear lacquer over the brass. Plated finishes, such as chrome and nickel, are plated onto polished brass. Living finishes change over time: unlacquered brass darkens with handling, and polished nickel is left uncoated and slowly develops a patina. Matt bronze is aged brass under a clear lacquer, but it is still designed to change: the bronze colour can lighten where it is touched often, exposing the brass below, so it does not come with a finish warranty.

Read our unlacquered brass guide to see how the living finish ages and how to care for it.

The biggest benefit of the range is consistency. A satin brass lever handle, hinge, casement stay and cupboard knob are all made to match, which is hard to achieve when mixing brands. If you are planning a whole house, choose the finish first, then pick designs within it.

Lever springs are tested to 100,000 operations, and the range carries a 10-year mechanism warranty for residential use, covering spring mechanism faults caused by workmanship or materials. Lacquers and finishes are affected by use and the environment, so they are not covered in the same way.

The lever handles are suitable for 30 and 60 minute timber fire doors when fitted with a CE-marked mortice latch or lock. Always check the fire door certificate and fit the hardware it specifies.

• Use bolt-through fixings rather than wood screws on round rose handles, so the inner rose cannot turn after fitting.
• Mortice knobs are sprung on one side only, and work best with a 3 inch tubular latch or longer so your knuckles clear the door frame.
• For a bathroom with mortice knobs, add a bathroom bolt or a thumb turn and release.

Match the lock or latch to the handle finish with York Security locks and latches, which are made in the same finishes.

• Solid brass vs zinc alloy handles: solid hot forged brass is denser and heavier than zinc alloy, and gives a better base for plating and polishing.
• Brass vs stainless steel: stainless steel suits busy commercial doors. Lacquered finishes on any brand can wear faster outdoors, so for exposed external doors ask us about the best finish.
• Brass vs black iron: if you want a rustic look rather than a brass finish, the M.Marcus black iron, bronze and pewter ranges listed above share many of the same designs.

Trade Door Handles is part of T.H. Wiggans Ironmongery, supplying architectural ironmongery since 1976. The range is on display at our Kendal showroom, alongside over 1000 door handle designs, and at our Carlisle showroom on Kingstown Industrial Estate, so you can see the finishes side by side before you buy. Our team helps homeowners, joiners, builders and architects plan complete door, window and kitchen schedules, and we deliver nationwide. Browse all door furniture or our wider architectural ironmongery range.