Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

areas, however deep, that have been oil sized.
At this stage, the gilded surface is very vulnerable
to finger prints and abrasion as the oil
size beneath the gold is still soft, so leave the
work undisturbed for at least 48 hours to give
the size time to dry and harden. Once it is
dry, brush it over with a large dry gilder’s mop
and, if desired, buff the gold with cotton wool,
taking care not to scratch the surface.
Transfer gold, loose leaves of gold that have
been adhered to tissue paper by pressure or
wax, is used in conditions where the loose
leaves of gold cannot be controlled, e.g.
exterior conditions. An experienced gilder will
find transfer leaf more time-consuming to
apply and therefore a more costly method of
applying the leaf. As a result it is usually
limited to exterior oil gilding or other areas
where draughts are a problem. Transfer leaf is
particularly useful for signwriting. It is less
lustrous than loose leaf as it conforms to the
texture of the supporting tissue.
14.3.5 Coatings
Oil gilding, once dry, is very durable and a
protective coating should not be necessary
unless heavy wear is anticipated. A thin coat
of a natural resin varnish such as dammar,
mastic or shellac may be found on some
objects. The colour of these materials may
have been enhanced by resinous coatings such
as dragon’s blood, gamboge and button or
garnet shellacs. Interior oil gilding may be
given a matte appearance by the application
of a thin rabbit skin, parchment size, or glair
coating. Weak parchment or rabbit skin size
mixed with pigments may be used in the same
way as for matting water gilding. Glair may be
prepared by beating egg white to a stiff froth
and diluting the liquid that runs off with a little
cold water (see p. 656). Pigments may be
added to alter the colour and the glaze may
be applied with a soft brush. Egg white used
in this way is delicate and brittle.
14.4 Composition
Composition was used as a cheaper alternative
to ornamentation that would otherwise
have been carved in wood. Composition was
made traditionally from a mixture of
colophony, linseed oil, hide glue and whiting,
although other materials such as lead fillers,
paper, starch pastes, pitch and eggs have also
been incorporated on occasion. The moist
thermoplastic material was pressed into
reverse carved reusable boxwood or fruitwood
moulds. Recent interest in composition has
generated several articles touching on both the
history and manufacture of this material,
including Thornton (1985, 1991a, 1991b), Rees
(1985) and Wetherall (1991b). Composition is
further discussed in section 10.5.7.
Bibliography
Introduction to traditional gilding 665
Figure 14.18 Laying gold leaf on oil size Figure 14.19 Laying down wrinkles in gold leaf on oil
size with a sable brush
Anon. (1874) The Illustrated Carver and Gilders Guide and
Picture Frame Makers Companion London
Budden, S. (ed.) (1991) Gilding and Surface Decoration,
Conference Preprints, UKIC
Cennini (trans. Thompson, 1954), The Craftsman’s
Handbook, Dover