Improvements in Coloring Certain Articles of Jewellery and the like.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Mar., 1886.
Complete Left, 13th Dec., 1886.
Complete Accepted, 14th Jan., 1887.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Coloring Certain Articles of Jewellery and the like.
I, ALFRED MARTIN of Great Hampton Street Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Jeweller, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of my invention is to make impure alloys or base metals having the
appearance, or the external appearance of colored gold, by supplying a means of
imparting to various articles of jewellery and art, the external appearance and quality
of a superior metal without impairing the forms and lineaments of the objects treated.
Thus an object of jewellery or art, is made to imitate or acquire the appearance of
colored gold, although actually made of an impure alloy or base metal. This I effect
by providing the impure alloy or base metal with a coating of gold of a standard
equal to that which is commonly employed when the external surface of solid gold is
required to be colored.
In carrying out my invention, I make up an article of jewellery in the ordinary
way, of plated metal, or of base metal, having a plating of gold on one, or on both
sides, commonly known as single or double plating, and I subject the article thus
made up, to an ordinary process of coloring; that is, I subject the gold plating,
covering the surface of a base metal or of an inferior alloy, to a dry or wet coloring
process, that removes the baser metal from the surface of the gold alloy plating,
leaving only exposed, the pure gold, thus giving all the appearance to the article of
having been made of gold of a superior standard.
An article made up of gold plating, is colored by a process or combination of
processes, such as the following
:-
Take a mixture of Saltpetre 7 ounces
Alum 3
Salts 4
"
Place this mixture in plumbago pot over fire, and when boiling, add two ounces of
Muriatic Acid; put in work for four. minutes, then remove it from the mixture and
rince it well in hot water; afterwards again immerse the work in color for one and
a half minutes, and then add to color, two ounces of hot water, and immerse the work
again in the diluted solution for one minute; rince again the work in hot water, and
put it again in the mixture for half a minute.

page_text: If the articles made up are produced from single plating, in which gold coating is
upon one side only of the base metal in inferior gold, then I protect the unplated
parts by a coating of shellac, wax, varnish or other material non-corrodible by the
acid or mixture.
If made up of double plating, then the edging should only be protected. This I
effect by employing shellac or the like; or I fix around the edging, a strip of gold
or wire of the cross section of the letter L or of any other section required; or the
edges exposing the base metal or alloy may be mitred, by shaping or filing the edgos
of each piece to an angle for taking two narrow strips of plating, secured by soldering.
ALFRED MARTIN.
By Henry Skerrett,
6, Livery Stroet, Birmingham,
Agent to the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Coloring Certain Articles of Jewellery and the like.
I, ALFRED MARTIN of Great Hampton Street Birmingham in the County of
Warwick Jeweller do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
The object of my said invention is to give or impart to base alloys, or base metals,
the appearance, or the external or visible appearance of coloured gold of fine quality;
thus, jewellery and works of art, although principally or primarily composed and
made up of an inferior quality gold, or a base alloy, or a base metal, are made when
finished, to have all the visible appearance of gold of a very superior quality or
standard, and without imparting the forms and lineaments of the said articles of
jewellery, works of art and other objects so produced. This I effect by providing the
impure alloy or base metal with a coating or covering of gold of a standard equal to
that which is commonly employed when the external surface of gold or solid gold is
required to be colored.
In carrying out my invention, I will describe it in connection with an article of
jewellery.
I make up an article of jewellery in the ordinary way, of plated metal, or in other
words a base metal, having a plating or covering of gold on one, or on both sides, and
commonly known as single or double plating, and I subject the article thus made up,
to an ordinary process of coloring; that is, I subject the gold plating, which covers
the surface of a base metal, or of an inferior alloy, to a dry or wet coloring process,
that removes the baser metal from the surface of the gold plating, or gold alloy plating,
leaving only exposed, the pure gold, which is commonly termed coloring.
An article made up of gold plating, is colored by a process or combination of
processes, such as the following.
Take a mixture of Saltpetre 7 ounces
Alum 3
Salts 4
"
"
Place this mixture in plumbago pot over fire, and when boiling, add two ounces of
Muriatic Acid; put in work for four minutes then remove it from the mixture and
rince it well in hot water; afterwards again immerse the work in color for one and
a half minutes, and then add to color, two ounces of hot water, and immerse the work
again in the diluted solution for one minute; rince again the work in hot water, and.
put it again in the mixture for half a minute.
If the articles made up are produced from single plating, in which gold coating is
upon one side only of the base metal in inferior gold, then I protect the unplated
parts by a coating of shellac, wax, varnish or other material non-corrodible by the
acid or mixture employed in coloring.
If made up of double plating, then the edge or edges of the said article is or are
subjected or immersed to a corrosive acid, or an acid that will eat away the exposed
impure metal or alloys, presented at or between the platings at the said edge or edges;
this causes or allows the boundary edges of the platings on the top and bottom sides,

page_text: on being heated or otherwise treated to contract or come together, so as to entirely
cover up or enclose the baser metal.
Or the edges may be protected, by a coating of shellac or the like, or otherwise, I
affix around the edge or edges, an edging wire of gold, preferably of the cross section
of the letter ; and further, the said edge or edges may be protected by first mitreing
them or shaping them as may be desired, and afterwards covering them up, or over
by a narrow strip of plating, secured by soldering, and with the exposed edges of the
baser metal covered up or enclosed by a process similar to that already described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
First. Imparting, or giving to base alloys, or base metals, or gold alloys of inferior
standards, the external or visible appearance of colored gold of fine quality, by the
means and process or combination of processes herein described.
Secondly Covering up or enclosing the edges of plated metals, by eating away
the exposed base alloys or base metals, which admits of the boundary edges of the
platings being brought together, for the purpose substantially as described; and
further, in protecting the exposed baser metals or poor alloys of gold, by shellac, varnish
or other like coatings, which are non-acted upon by corrosives, as described.