[Jewelry making - Article 00136] - Re: [Orchid] Letters on Sterling

[Jack]

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    If you had lived a few centuries ago there would have been no
    problem - there are several ancient recipes for writing in black
    letters on silver. 

    Weeding out the ones based on conventional pigments, the best were
    just a form of 'painted-on' niello. There are various surviving
    examples from ancient and more recent times - remember deliberate
    black surfaces were not unusual on Russian and some European silver
    in  the 19th century. (So, budding conservators out there - the black
    on old silver is not always unintended) 

    Back on track ... there are recipes for panted niello from Roman
    period Egypt, but perhaps the most useful, in, modern terms, is that
    of Theophilus writing in the twelfth century who describes niello for
    painting on silver made from silver:copper:lead, in the ratio of
    4:2:1, (plus sulphur, of course) applied using borax as a flux.
    (Theophilus Bk 3, ch. 27 , 28) 

    I guess you grind it up fine with borax, mix in a little gum
    tragacanth or such-like and paint it on. But there must be more
    ingenious way of applying such stuff nowdays  (various types of
    masking, silk screen??? Perhaps even some type of localised laser
    fusing, leave that up to the more practical guys.) 

    Mind wandering, but why not mask surface with thin layer of wax or
    such like, engrave through it with  mechanical or laser engraving
    tool, paint thin layer niello mixture over surface, remove wax with
    organic solvent that leaves niello mixture in place over non-masked
    areas (because water soluble glue used as binder)then heat to fuse
    niello. No idea if it would work, but the engraving provess would
    have the added advantage of leaving a roughened surface which would
    aid adhesion of the stuff.. Maybe... 

    Anyhow, good luck, and by the way Theophilus recommended saliva
    followed by ear wax for polishing niello work. (Theophilus Bk 3, ch
    41.) 

Jack Ogden
jack AT striptwist.com


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