Tea at Trianon: How To Clean Silver With Baking Soda

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, December 1, 2023

How To Clean Silver With Baking Soda

From Southern Living:

Keeping your silver in tip-top shape can be easy when using the proper materials at home. There are many silver items you may have at home that can use a bit of cleaning, including jewelry, coins, candlesticks, lamps, antiques, and silver dining sets like serveware, dinnerware, silverware, and drinkware.

Most silver items are made using sterling silver, a silver alloy containing 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals, usually copper. “Alloying this small amount of other metal with the silver greatly increases the strength and durability of the silver, but it also greatly increases its susceptibility to tarnish,” explains Emily Hill, co-founder of AL&EM Fine and Permanent Jewelry, based in Charleston, South Carolina. “Because of this, some silver items may need to be cleaned often.” Learning to clean your silver at home will make maintaining your silver items much easier and more convenient.

While many silver items at home can be cleaned with baking soda, there are a few that shouldn’t. “Rare silver antiques should not be cleaned with baking soda, at least without consulting an expert first,” says Alex Klaes, co-founder of AL&EM Fine and Permanent Jewelry. “These pieces could be very valuable and cleaning them may actually lower their value.” These collectibles develop unique discolorations, known as a patina, over long periods of time. This patina is an extremely desirable trait to some collectors, as it highlights the piece’s authenticity and age. Hill advises to ask a professional with expertise in the specific type of silver antique you have before cleaning. (Read more.)