International studio (16.1902)

The Art of True Enamelling

equal to the horses in artistic merit ? Some among
them seem to lose dignity through lack of stature.
For all that, his statuettes are very good, more
especially the one entitled A Knight on his War-
Horse, with its well-designed pedestal; and good
statuettes are rare to-day, That they may soon
become both common and popular'is the hope of
many who have at heart the best interests of
sculpture; for statuettes may be placed in any
home, whereas large statues require such a scheme
of room-decoration as prevents their appeal from
being aggressive.
Finally, as Mr. Gilbert Bayes has just started
on his career, it seems best to end this
short article, as Ibsen ends his plays,
with a note of interrogation. What will he
do in the future? He has won his spurs, he
has made an excellent beginning; and it is
to be hoped that he will go on cultivating the
real bent of his talents, and not think that
work done with difficulty must needs have
more value than that which comes most easily
to the right completion.
HE ART OF TRUE
ENAMELLING UPON
METALS.—PART III. BY
ALEXANDER FISHER*
Champleve enamel upon the precious
metals, silver and gold, is done in identi-
cally the same manner as upon copper (see
Part II. of this series). It is better to use
silver a little above the standard, as it is
more flexible; and gold ought not to be less
than 18 carats. Enamel, practically speak-
ing, after it has been fixed is neither ex-
panded by heat nor contracted by cold. In
this, of course, it is at variance with the
copper, the silver, or the gold, and it is the
constant effort of the one to throw the other
off. And this accounts for several of the
most important parts of the processes used
in enamelling. In the case of the champleve
process, it is the reason for the enclosing
lines of metal and the keyed grounds ; in
cloisonne, the reason of the wire cloisons
and of other essential parts of the processes,
which I shall describe in their place.
* Two typographical errors occurred in the second
article of this series. On p. 94, below the illustra-
tion of enamelling tools, read “scorpers” instead of
“scoopers”; on p. 92, in the receipt given for white
enamel, read “ 10 parts of calx to 16 parts of flux.”
108

After the work in the champleve process is
finished one of the most important things is the
gilding of the metal parts. This is generally done
by a gilder. There are two methods of gilding’
One is called “ mercury-gilding ” or “ water-
gilding,” and the other, “ electro gilding.” The
first is done by an amalgam of gold and mercury,
which, mixed with water, is painted on the metal,
and then subjected to a heat sufficiently great to
drive off the mercury, leaving the gold attached to
the metal.
The process of electro-gilding is carried out by
the use of an electric battery, in which the metal


STUDY FOR A FOUNTAIN BY GILBERT BA'W