Gilding

Since the Egyptian Antiquity, and in particular , it was of use to raise the objets d'art, worship, or invaluable, by recovering them of Or. This metal, the only one at the time having the characteristic not to oxidize, was symbol of immortality, and thus the divine one.

One finds thus wood statuettes, objects out of metal, out of stone, of which entire surface or partial was the subject of a covering, using a very thin gold sheet, in order not to stop the details of the support.

This practice evolved/moved during the centuries, and many objects still today are gilded. With the wire of time, one saw appearing two other processes of gilding.

Gilding with the sheet

Gilding with the sheet, oldest, is always practiced, in particular for supports in Bas-relief supporting other processes badly, as wood (framing S of mirrors or tables), the wrought iron, the commemorative plaques, etc But also of the Toiture S (Dôme of the Invalids), Sculpture S and other decorations (Opéra Garnier) with Paris.

Gold being a very ductile metal, it is possible by hammering to obtain very thin sheets (some micrometers) and plastics without breaking the wire of metal. These gold sheets are then posed using a brush on the prepared support, sometimes using egg white to ensure adhesion. A glossing ensures the final aspect.

The Techniques of gilding evolved/moved during the centuries following the periods.

  • gilding with water (with softening)
This process used on carved wood requires a score of successive operations and makes it possible to obtain a smoothness and a detail emphasized by browning.

  • gilding with compounding (with oil)

Gilding with water on the parts browned, and gilding with oil on the matt parts. The association of the two techniques offers the best put in volume of the profiles on which the ornaments are moulded.

Gilding with mercury

This process consists in applying to the support perfectly pickled to the acids a Amalgame liquid, gold having the characteristic to dissolve in the mercury. One heats then the object, which causes to sublimate the mercury which evaporates, leaving gold alone to the bottom of the least details of the support.

This process gives a very solid and durable gilding, but can apply only to objects of small size for reasons of handling, and supporting the test of fire. It is generally about bronzes of art or furnishing, or other metals.

Gilding applied, one finishes surface by a browning, which consists in crushing the layer of gold in the pores of the support, using a tool called burnisher made up of a fixed hard stone: Hematite, Agate.

A completion can be realized thanks to various receipts in order to modify the ton of gilding.

It is a process which gives a gilding of great quality, durable, which was applied to the majority of the Sculpture S out of bronze gilded since the Renaissance. It is quasi-abandoned today, because its implementation releases from the vapors of mercury very toxic and detrimental for the craftsman and the environment.

Galvanic gilding

It is the process technologically most recent. It uses the discovery of Galvani, which consists in plunging two metal electrodes in a salt bath, formant battery. But if one makes pass from the current, one causes the displacement of metal molecules of an electrode towards the other, from the anode towards cathode. This process is called Galvanisation.

The object, made conducting beforehand using black lead (lead dust) if it were not it, is immersed in a conducting bath, and is used as cathode. The anode consists of stainless or platinum.

This process was controlled at the 19th century by the goldsmith Christofle, whose reputation is due to the gilding of the immense statue, extremely known, which crowns Notre-Dame of the Guard to Marseilles, realized under Napoleon III.

This process is currently most widespread, on an industrial scale, in particular in electronics. It allows a regular gilding, which one controls the thickness. With regard to bronzes of art, it with the disadvantage of tarnishing a little, and to have a metallic luster a little cold, not always happy, generally chechmate.

Gilding on wood (stages)

There exist two principal techniques of gilding: gilding with water and gilding with compounding. One can apply sheets of gold, money, copper, palladium, etc Gilding with water or softening is the process traditionally used on wood.

1. To degrease and sandpaper wood.

2. To prepare: to apply ten surfacers. They consist of adhesive of skin of rabbit and precipitated chalk. The last white are smoothed then softened.

3. Sandpapering: with prêle or of very fine sandpaper, to make the finishes perfectly smooth.

4. Reparure: stage comparable with chiselling in goldsmithery. Using irons to repair the gilder emphasizes the ornaments, stop them round under the surfacers, it refines the sculpture given birth to from the plays of shade and light. It is a stage which requires a perfect knowledge of the styles.

5. Jaunissage: application of yellow of gluing (ocher yellow and adhesive of rabbit skin diluted).

6. Assietter: The plate called also the Bowl of Arménie, facilitates the browning of gold. It is a clay made up of ground and oxide iron which give him an orange blood coloring.

7. The chiennage: Once the installation of the finished plate, the gilder polishes surface plateful so that small grains remaining do not rayent the gold sheets. This operation also facilitates browning.

8. Installation: The application of the gold sheet is very delicate, indeed considering their brittleness they cannot be touched with the hand, they are posed in bulk on a cushion, to move them the gilder thus uses the dish D a knife has to gild to position them L after L different on L before cushion, then breath to flatten them above, it is the jonflage.

9. The Browning: Once the dry support, the gilder carries out browning then. This stage consists of crushing gold with an agate stone to return it shining. It allows a contrast with the parts remained matt.

10. Repairing: During repairing, on certain part gold adheres badly and is detached. The gilder thus fills each space left vacuum using small pieces of sheets.

11. Hammering: Now it is about a stage of protection and of conservation, one applies adhesive of rabbit skin very diluted to sheath gold and to protect it.

11. the patina: It is the completion, each patina being single it helps to find the authenticity of the product, for that the gilder adds coloured larvis or reproduced the wear of time by means of cracks, stains etc

See too

Internal bonds

  • the framing of the works of art which largely used gilding.

External bonds

  • Workshop of gilding Antoine Palomares Craftsman gilder of wire father since 5 generations

  • http://www.doreur.fr/ Site of a craftsman explaining you his passion, his work. You will be able to discover with the wire of its site, the stages of gilding, the tools used, its history, but also of the galleries of image and a catalog on line!

  • http://www.gripari.fr/ Site of a gilder amateur, independent of any supplier. Detail of the techniques used, example by the image.

  • http://www.bellino.fr/ Gilding on bronzes and goldsmithery. Further information and many photographs on the site. Examples of restorations.

Random links:Brigitte Auber | Plot of July 20th, 1944 against Adolf Hitler | Bpitch Control | Oscar Dunn (journalist) | Route main road 639 | Gilbert,_Arizona