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Gilding

Gilding is a type of decoration involving the skilful application of gold, usually by hand.

This is also know as solid gilding. Best quality gold is mixed with mercury. It is usually applied to bone china. It is fired at about 730 C to leave pure gold. The gold is dull in appearance when fired and needs to be burnished to produce a bright finish.

Burnishing is the process where fired gold applications are rubbed with silver sand and a burnishing stone (hematite or agate mounted in a wooden handle) or a damp chamois leather to produce a lustrous finish.

Gold leaf was ground with honey to produce a paste. This was applied to wares which were then fired at a low temperature. The method, rarely used today, was unsatisfactory as the finish was dull and the gold wore off with handling.

This method is used primarily on bone china. The whole of the piece is masked except for the area to be decorated. Then the item of ware is dipped in acid which removes the glaze on any unprotected areas. This produces a relief effect. After drying best gold is applied with the affected areas.

In this technique, certain areas are raised above the general level of the ware by applying a paste which hardens to produce an elevated decoration. This is then covered with best gold. The technique may involved four or five firings.

This method was introduced in the 1850s. The gold is applied as a liquid suspension and is painted onto the pieces. This is usually done on the gilder’s wheel. When it comes from the kiln, the gold is already bright and needs no burnishing. The drawback of this method is that bright gold tends to rub off the ware easily.