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 Nail Polish to Protect Hallmarks
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| Author | Topic: Nail Polish to Protect Hallmarks |
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Nyoman Posts: 69 |
posted 12-18-2009 10:09 PM
  
[01-2769] Recently I “ran into” some especially nice estate silver, prestigious estate, prestigious silver, and a prestigious dealer provenance, where the hallmarks had been painted over with clear nail polish. Most of these items had been collected in the 1960’s and 1970’s. I recall hearing that this was sometimes done by collectors as a means of protecting those hallmarks from future wear…use, cleaning, polishing, etc. As you can see from these photos, over time this nail polish discolors and imparts a rather nasty looking halo around the hallmarks. This discoloration can also cause questions about the originality of the hallmarks. I have two questions for the esteemed board members. One, have you run into this in your collecting experience, and two, knowing that a slight and careful application of acetone would remove this nail polish, would you do so, or leave as is? Many thanks and best wishes to all for a wonderful and safe holiday! IP: Logged |
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taloncrest Posts: 169 |
posted 12-19-2009 09:15 AM
I have often used acetone to remove lacquer coatings from silver, and I don't use it particularly sparingly. I go outside to do it, and it often takes multiple attempts to get all of the lacquer off. I've not seen any pieces with the hallmark protected this way, but it seems like a great idea to me, as it is easily removed. I'm eager to see what the others say; I'll bet I've been doing the wrong thing for years! And I'd leave the polish if it were me, but it was badly worn, I might remove it and reapply. [This message has been edited by taloncrest (edited 12-19-2009).] IP: Logged |
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agleopar Posts: 850 |
posted 12-19-2009 09:28 AM
Acetone, lacquer thinner will not hurt the silver but is awful to work with, so outdoors is a great suggestion. My vote is get it off. I do not see the need for these coatings. Silver well cared for does not need them. IP: Logged |
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vathek Posts: 966 |
posted 12-19-2009 11:18 AM
Hester Bateman and Paul Storr? IP: Logged |
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Hose_dk Posts: 400 |
posted 12-19-2009 01:33 PM
What a peculiar idea - to protect. Marks are supposed to be worn and used. I heard a trick - use tape - when polish then you don't polish mark, and the tape can be removed right away. IP: Logged |
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agleopar Posts: 850 |
posted 12-19-2009 04:00 PM
Hose_dk, great trick I love it! Some thing polishers do. But if your in a hurry just use gentle polish and only a little on the cloth first and do not rub the marks. IP: Logged |
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Nyoman Posts: 69 |
posted 12-19-2009 07:01 PM
Many thanks for all the responses. “What a peculiar idea - to protect. Marks are supposed to be worn and used.” In those areas exposed to use, cleaning and polishing, I think we all look for some appropriate wear to the hallmarks, but, I think the idea using nail polish was to protect these marks from being so worn as to eventually become illegible. Yes, these are various pieces by Paul Storr and Hester Bateman. Given the prestige of these pieces, perhaps that was incentive enough for this early collector to protect the hallmarks by painting them over with nail polish. Using tape to cover the hallmarks prior to cleaning sounds like a good idea but in the end, if the tape is strong enough to stay in place during the cleaning process, once removed, won’t there be some glue residue from the tape to then have to contend with? I went ahead and used acetone, dabbing it onto a Q-tip and worked the areas with the nail polish, and it immediately removed the layer of nail polish. As the solvent acetone is the active ingredient in nail polish remover, that should be no surprise. Agleopar, I like your suggestion to remove the film, and in particular, your idea to treat those areas with the hallmarks in a more careful and gentle manner. Perhaps Mr. Dietz will spot this post and provide insight on how a museum curator would approach these issues, i.e. removal of the nail polish and conservation of the hallmarks. Many thanks again. IP: Logged |
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