IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GOLD-PLATED METAL, AND IN ARTICLES MADE THEREOF.
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, Loudon, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GOLD-PLATED METAL, AND IN
ARTICLES MADE THEREOF.". A communication from abroad by Lucien Joseph
Falize, junior, of Paris, France, Goldsmith & Jeweller.
Sealed the 1st August 1879, and dated the 20th March 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th March 1879.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
GOLD-PLATED METAL, AND IN ARTICLES MADE THEREOF." [A communication
from abroad by Lucien Joseph Falize, junior, of Paris, France, Goldsmith &
Jeweller.]
This Invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of gold-plated metal,
and in articles made thereof.
Fine gold of a high quality (and particularly pure gold) is not employed for
goldsmiths' and jewellers' work notwithstanding its richness, beautiful colour, and
attractive appearance, for the reason that it is extremely malleable and possesses
but little strength, therefore the usual practice is to alloy gold with a metal having
greater tenacity and resistance than itself, or to gild the surface of articles made of
silver or copper, but in neither case is the tone or appearance of the gold anything
like that of pure gold notwithstanding the various means employed for treating the
exterior surface of plated articles; moreover, the latter become deteriorated and
wear out rapidly. The methods of plating employed for uniting silver to copper, or
even copper or silver to alloyed gold, are not applicable for uniting silver with fine
gold, the reason being that the two metals have no affinity for each other, but the
said Invention provides means whereby this may be effected, and is carried into
practice as follows, that is to say :-
I beat the metals to a high temperature and weld them together by the aid
of a hydraulic press.. The less affinity the metals have for each other before being
welded the more difficult is it to disunite them when once they have been welded.
A plate of silver and one of fine gold thus united may be laminated, forged, turned,
Price 6d21

page_text: stamped, beaten, drilled, chased, soldered, or otherwise treated or manipulated
without risk of the metals separating, I therefore provide as a new article a double
or united metal in the form of a plate which will stand all the operations of the
goldsmith and jeweller, and which presents on one or both of its surfaces a layer
more or less thick of the purest and best gold. Moreover, the said double metal
thus made by the intimate welding together of the silver and fine gold permits of.
the manufacture of embossed objects with or without enamel and in the following
manner, that is to say, I trace on the surface of the gold any desired design, a
portion of which may be preserved intact, while the other portion will be cut out,
that is to say, grooved or hollowed with a graving tool or eaten out by acid. In
this cutting out or deepening the metal the underlying silver is exposed in certain
parts. The workmen will then finish the article by hammering and rounding the
fine gold in order to remove the sharp edges. The silver exposed in the hollowed
or deepened parts of the designs will be oxidised and have the appearance of iron
and steel, for example, by means of sulphur vapours or hydro-sulphuric acid the
exposed silver will be blackened and a light layer of sulphur of silver will thus be
formed. I thus obtain the same embossing effects as those obtained with gold upon
iron or steel which are seen on certain foreign arms.
The combination of silver with fine gold, as above described, provides means for
readily producing (conjointly with the gold and black tones or colors of the united
metal) effects of color having altogether a particular and special appearance
by employing enamel. It is well known that enamel is modified with regard
to tone and appearance according to the metal upon which it is applied; thus blue,
violet, and green enamel, have through transparency, a better color on silver than
on gold, whilst red, yellow, brown, and pink enamel look better on gold; therefore
if the sunk or depressed parts or cavities where the silver is exposed are filled with
dark blue enamel, light blue enamel, or green enamel, after having been first
scratched or roughened in order to secure the adhesion of the metal, veritable
inlaid enamel work will be produced having as good an appearance as if the enamel
had been applied on sheets of silver set in a plate of fine gold. In applying enamel
upon gold, as, for instance, red enamel, all the beauty of the finest enamelled work
is obtained. Under the same conditions I obtain with the said united or double
metal enamel in mosaic work, painted enamel, translucid enamel, enamel in relievo
and bas-relief.
This homogeneous double metal may be chased in high relief to form figures and
ornaments, or engraved, embossed, punched, sawn, and otherwise manipulated.
For certain art bronzes and for goldsmiths' work the underlying sheet or
plate of silver of the united or double metal may be replaced by a sheet of copper,
but the gold will always be either pure or of a superior quality to that ordinarily
used.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 20th
September 1879.
"
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
GOLD-PLATED METAL, AND IN ARTICLES MADE THEREOF." A communication
from abroad by Lucien Joseph Falize, junior, of Paris, France, Goldsmith and
Jeweller.
This Invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of gold-plated metal,
and in articles made thereof, for jewellery and the like.
Fine gold of a high quality (and particularly pure gold) is not employed for gold-
smiths' and jewellers work notwithstanding its richness, beautiful colour, and
attractive appearance for the reason that it is extremely malleable and possesses
but little strength, therefore the usual practice is to alloy gold with a metal having
greater tenacity and resistance than itself, or to gild the surface of articles made of
silver or copper, but in neither case is the tone or appearance of the gold anything
like that of pure gold notwithstanding the various means employed for treating the
exterior surface of plated articles; moreover, the latter become deteriorated and
wear out rapidly. The methods of plating employed for uniting silver to copper,
or even copper or silver to alloyed gold are not applicable for uniting silver with
fine gold, the reason being that the two metals have no affinity for each other, but
the said Invention provides means whereby this may be effected and is carried into
practice as follows, that is to say :—
I heat the metals to a high temperature and weld them together by the aid of a
hydraulic press. The less affinity the metals have for each other before being
welded the more difficult is it to disunite them when once they have been welded.
A plate of silver and one of fine gold thus united may be laminated, forged, turned,
stamped, beaten, drilled, chased, soldered, or otherwise treated or manipulated
without risk of the metals separating. I therefore provide as a new article a double
or united metal in the form of a plate, which will bear all the operations of the
goldsmith and jeweller and which presents on one or both of its surfaces a layer
more or less thick of the purest and best gold; moreover, the said double metal
thus made by the intimate welding together of the silver and fine gold permits of
the manufacture of embossed objects with or without enamel and in the following
manner, that is to say, I trace on the surface of the gold any desired design, a
portion of which may be preserved intact, while the other portion will be cut out,
that is to say, grooved or hollowed with a graving tool or eaten out by acid. In
thus cutting out or deepening the metal the underlying silver is exposed in certain
parts. The workmen will then finish the articles by hammering and rounding the
fine gold in order to remove the sharp edges. The silver exposed in the hollowed or
deepened parts of the designs will be oxidized and have the appearance of iron and
steel, for example, by means of sulphur vopours or hydro-sulphuric acid the exposed
silver will be blackened and a light layer of sulphuret of silver will thus be formed.
I thus obtain the same embossing effects as those attained with gold upon iron or
steel which are seen in certain foreign arms.
The accompanying Drawing represents a plate of metal ornamented according to
the said Invention, Figure 1 being a front view, and Figure 2 a section, the thickness
of the plate in the latter Figure being exaggerated.
A plate of gold o is soldered to a plate of silver a, then according to any desired
design the gold is cut out to expose at certain parts 6 the underlying silver; the
latter having been oxidised in the depressions or cavities gives to the metal plate
the appearance seen in Figure 1,

page_text: In Figure 3 is shewn at the upper portion the gold which has had parts cut out
to form cavities and expose the underlying silver; the lower part of this figure
shews the silver oxidised.
The combination of silver with fine gold, as above described, provides means
..for readily producing (conjointly with the gold and black tones or colours of
the united metal) effects of colour having altogether a particular and special
appearance by employing enamel. It is well known that enamel is modified
with regard to tone and appearance according to the metal upon which it is
applied; thus blue, violet, and green enamel have through transparency a better
colour on silver than on gold, whilst red, yellow, brown, and pink enamel look
better on gold; therefore, if as shewn in Figures 3, 4, 5, and 6, the sunk or
depressed parts or cavities where the silver is exposed are filled with dark blue
enamel c, light blue enamel d, or green enamel e, after having been first scratched
or roughened in order to secure the adherence of the metal, veritable inlaid enamel
work will be produced having as good an appearance as if the enamel had been
applied on sheets of silver set in a plate of fine gold. In applying enamel upon
gold, as, for instance, red enamel f, all the beauty of the finest enamelled work is
obtained. Under the same conditions I obtain with the said united or double metal
enamel in mosaic work, painted enamel, translucid enamel, enamel in relievo, and
bas-relief.
This homogeneous double metal may be chased in high relief to form figures and
ornaments, or engraved, embossed, punched, sawn, and otherwise manipulated.
For certain art bronzes and for goldsmiths' work the underlying sheet or
plate of silver of the united or double metal may be replaced by a sheet of
copper, but the gold will always be either pure or of a superior quality to that
ordinarily used; moreover, the objects thus constructed may be ornamented by
engraving or enamelling, as herein before described.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim,-
First. The double or united metal formed by welding and compressing together
fine gold and silver, thus producing a homogeneous metal which may be subjected
to forging, chasing, stamping, or other operations, as above described.
Second. The manufacture of this improved doubled or united metal into gold-
smiths' and jewellers' work, the gold being cut away to expose the silver, which is
oxidised in the exposed parts, as above described.
Third. The combination of this doubled or united metal (some of the gold of
which is grooved or cut away) with colored enamel applied in the grooved or sunk
portions, either upon the gold or upon the exposed silver, as above set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine.
WM ROBERT LAKE (To)