metals

What type of gloves do you not use with metals

Latex

What are the 9 agents of deterioration

Fire

Loss

Water

Physical

Chemical

Biological

Light

Unsuitable relative humidity

Unsuitable temp

How do get environmental damage on metals

Damp conditions (dimensional changes, corrosion, rot, mould)

Pollution and interaction (volatile organic compounds)

How do you get chemical damage on metals

Corrosion, staining, solubility

Fingerprints

What can start and promote corrosion

High humidity, pollutants or contaminants

How do you recognise active corrosion

Active loss, rapid expansion in volume, flaking or powdering of surface

How do you recognise inactive corrosion

Stable oxide layer, tarnish, desirable or artificial patina

Name types of ferrous metals

iron and steel

Main issues with ferrous metals

Very susceptible to moisture

Inactive corrosion in ferrous metals

Surface varying in colour between black-blue and red-brown (always record)

Surface may be pitted uneven and dull

Active corrosion in ferrous metals

Fragments surrounding an object

Loose surface

Orange/brown powdery corrosion

Depressions with orange spots in the centres

“sweating” or “weeping” yellow orange or brown droplets on surface

What are copper alloys

Bronze and brass

Active corrosion in copper and copper alloys

Various forms of corrosion products on surface

Difficult to identify different types of corrosion product by appearance

Name some forms of corrosion products for copper and copper alloys

Black spots

Green waxy accretions

Powdery products

Film

What are copper alloys particularly susceptible to

Volatile organic vapours

How to help protect copper alloys

Surface coating

What are lead and pewter particularly susceptible to

Acidity

Atmospheric pollutants

Damp conditions

Inactive corrosion in lead and pewter

Dark grey stable tarnish

Lighter grey stable patina on pewter (desirable)

Colour may vary

Active corrosion in lead and pewter

Formation of loosely adhered white powder (toxic)

Powder may form evenly over the surface or concentrated in pinpoint spots

Powder surrounding an undisturbed object

What are common sources of damaging acid vapours

Wooden storage or display units

Deteriorated cardboard

Poor-quality paper

Types of silver

Fine silver

Sterling silver

Silver gilt

Player silver

What makes tarnishing rate increase on silver

Humid conditions

Composition

Method of manufacture

Colours of tarnish on silver

Yellow

Green

Blue

Blue black

How to see tarnishing on silver

Visually distracting

Colour change

How to see impurities in gold

Colour change

Colour changes of gold

Green corrosion

Purple black or brown iridescence

Things gold is susceptible to and why

Physical damage as relatively soft

Over cleaning and remove thin layer of building

Which metal type is generally not reactive

Gold

Types of plated metals

Copper/silver

Copper/gold

Copper/tin

Iron/tin

Cupronickel/silver

Why plated metals difficult

Hard to identify either of the metals

When does corrosion usually happen with plated metals

When the plating has been perferayed

How to see corrosion on metal plated

Underlaying may come through the hole

Loose powder around the object

Blisters on the surface

Ways to identify metals

Weight

Colour

Surface

Use of object

Good relative humidity numbers

35-60%

Good temp for conservation

18 degrees

Magnetic metals

Iron

Steel

Some stainless steels

Non-magnetic metals

Aluminium

Copper

Brass

Gold

Most stainless steel

Dull grey colour

Lead or zinc

Silvery grey colour

Steel

Aluminium

Nickel

Yellow or gold colour

Gold

Brass

Bronze

Reddish brown colour

Copper

Surprisingly light metal

Aluminium

Heavy and dense metal

Lead

How to tell difference between lead and pewter

Pewter is lighter

Difference between cast and struck

• Cast: slightly soft detail, surface pitting, tooling marks, often a thicker blank, sometimes a visible seam or filled sprue. Reverse may be uneven.

• Struck: sharper relief, die-flow lines, possible die cracks or die-axis consistency, flatter and more even surfaces.

Book for Italian renaissance coins

Hill, Corpus of Italian Medals of the Renaissance

Book for medalists

Forrer

Label flat bit of a medal

Field

Inscription around the end of the design

Legend

Space below the main design

Exergue

Types of rim/boarder

Plain

Reeded

Linear

Toothed

What do you call where the bust is cut off

Truncation

What is a die axis

Direction of obverse to reverse

Ways to describe head

Bare, laurate,

Crowned

Helmeted

Capped

Ways to describe dress

Drapery

Armour

Cuirass

Ruff

Lace collar

Für trimmed robe

Academic gown

Robe

Types of fitting

Added loop

Solder

Traces

Mount

Case

Name key developments

the Hedlinger school (18th-century Switzerland and Sweden), Boulton’s Soho Mint and the Wyon family and Pistrucci in Britain, the French art medal revival, and the founding of FIDEM (1937) and the British Art Medal Society (1982)