Can you tell from the patina?
Re: Another Mystery In The Bead Room -- newtoit Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: Rosanna Post Reply
10/04/2015, 20:39:30

I am also stepping way outside my comfort zone, but in your pictures, the surface of the blue melons appears like the surface of glass that has been etched to remove the gloss and look "older". The black residue in the grooves looks "too black" for an old bead and the blue surface looks too uniform. I have seen artificially patinated beads with a very black residue that is almost impossible to remove without using a strong solvent. Age-related patination normally will scrub right off with soap & water, as it's a mixtures of plain dirt and body oil.

If you feel like experimenting with one bead, try picking at the black residue with a pin point to see if it behaves more like flaky dirt or more like a tarry substance. Then see how easy it is to wash off.

Would love to hear other opinions on this topic.



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