A NEW METHOD OF MANUFACTURING VERDIGRIS, WHICH I DENOMINATED BRITISH VERDIGRIS
Year: 1812

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JACOB
ZINK, of Globe Road, Mile End, in the County of Middlesex, Chymist, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third did, by His
Letters Patent, under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twentieth day of January, in
the fifty-second year of His reign, give and grant unto me, the said Jacob
Zink, my exors, admors, and assigns, His especial licence, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that I, the said Jacob Zink, my exors, admors, and
assigns, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of
"A NEW METHOD OF MANUFACTURING VERDIGRIS, WHICH I DENOMINATED BRITISH
VERDIGRIS;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso that if
I, the said Jacob Zink, shall not particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an
instrument in writing under his hand and seal, and cause the same to be
enrolled in our High Court of Chancery within two calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent, that then the said.
Letters Patent, and all liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby granted,
shall utterly cease, determine, and become void, as in and by the same
(relation being thereunto had, may more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Jacob Zink, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and the
method pursued by me in preparing and making the same, is as follows, that is
to say:

page_text: The Materia. The substances and ingredients with which it is prepared
chiefly consist of: 1st, pure copper; 2d, oil of vitriol; 3, pot ashes or soda.
Of these are made, first, a saturated solution of oxid of sulphate of copper, and
secondly, a solution of either vegetable or mineral alkali, which two, properly
combined and mixed together, will create and produce the superior verdigris,
for the exclusive manufacture of which the said Patent has been granted.
The first, the saturated solution of oxid of sulphate of copper, is made by
causing a furnace to be constructed, on which is placed an iron pot or vat,
somewhat larger than another of copper to be put into it, the latter, notwith-
standing, so large as to contain about 300 gallons of water. The dimensions
of the iron to exceed that of the copper pot or vat inasmuch only that, on
placing the last into the first, a space of about six inches remains all round
between the two, which space is to be filled up or stuffed with sand, fixing in
this manner firmly the copper into the iron vehicle. This being properly
filled up, take first from 10 to 121b. of pure copper, cut small or granulated,
with 30lb. oil of vitriol, and put them in said boiler, then proceed to light
the fire and heat the furnace; on the oil of vitriol getting warm, add to it 8lb.
pure water, and let all these together foam up and boil till the requisite calci-
nation becomes effected, and the materia in the boiler gets dry, which it will
shew itself to do by an apparent discontinuance of evaporation, and that no
more steam issues from it. Take then this prepared oxid of sulphate out of
the boiler, and go on with making as much more of it (after the manner
described) as will be sufficient to saturate a quantity of about 300 gallons of
water, which water take care in the meantime to have at hand in a proper
sized tub, for the purpose of dissolving in it the oxid of sulphate, which will be
best done thus:-Suspend by a rope and pulley a sufficiently large piece of stout
canvass, cut round and sowed (so as to fall rather concave) to a ring or hoop
of copper, having an arm or handle of the same metal, to which the rope
above is fastened; lay on this apparatus the prepared powder, and let the same
thus, by the assistance of rope and pulley, be alternately plunged in and drawn
out of the water underneath, stirring the same continually; having dissolved
in this manner as much of the oxid of sulphate as will saturate the stated
quantity of water, the whole solution will be prepared.
tub.
The other is, simply, that of 150lb. pot ashes or soda, dissolved in about 300
gallons of water, for which take care likewise to procure in time a proper sized
Now, as already said, on bringing these two liquors together, take into
one or more pails so much of each as to equalize their respective strength,
which is seen by the colours and appearance of the liquors, and known by
experience only, and therefore cannot possibly be described. The result will

page_text: prove that this mixture and combination creates produces the wished-for
article. However, it is then not yet perfect; it requires after this, its first
creation, to be freed first from the water it contains, next cleansed and purified,
and last of all to be made perfectly dry so as to be preserved. For the first
purpose, it will save trouble and expence, if, instead of pails for mixing the
two solutions together, there be used, when completing the production, a
proper number of tubs containing each about ten gallons of water; further,
that there be constructed an equal number of stools or stands, to the top of
each of which there must be loosely fastened proportionate pieces of good stout
canvass to lay the composition on, and thro' which the water and adhering
to the same when first slooped out of the tubs is strained; to facilitate which,
the composition may, whilst laying on these drainers, be stirred about with a
wooden spade; this done, replace the composition in the same tubs, and throw
on each tub about ten gallons of water, with which stir it about once more, in
order to cleanse, and also to free it from the tartarus vitriolatus; this having
been properly done, it must be spread a second time on the drainers, and
stirred as before, till it is quite freed of all watery parts, when finally it must
be put into canvas bags covered over with flannel, and thus packed up; the
remaining moisture is to be- squeezed out as much as possible by means of a
press, where, after being laid on boards or laths, exposed to the air and left
to dry further, the composition will become perfect, and prove in quality
and virtue superior to any manufactured in France, which has hitherto always
been preferred and esteemed inimitable.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jacob Zink, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, the Sixteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twelve.
Inrolled the Eighteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twelve.