What is Ormol?

Ormol, also called Ground Gold, is to imitate an object that mimics the appearance of gold. Historically, this applies to a coating on bronze or brass subjects, which is achieved only by a dangerous process known as Mercury Gilding. In modern use, Ormol is used for any gilded object, although real pieces are rare.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the styles of Baroque and Rococo styles achieved popularity among the royal and noble classes of Europe, especially in France and England. The construction of Rococo especially relies on highly detailed decoration and occasionally leads detectives to call it Baroque madness. Unlike early design forms, where the ornament was perceived as accessories for architecture, Rococo turned the process to correspond to the capacity, asymmetric and highly decorated design. One of the cornerstones of the movement was adoration for extremely detailed gold or gilded decorations.

in France, the rarity of the gold lead and the popularity of Rococo leads toThe invention of gold hybrids, especially by mixing gold with mercury paste. The name of the gilded comes from the French words or the mole , which means mashed gold. To compensate for the lack of easily available sources of gold, Ormol has become extremely popular throughout Europe.

The process used to create analle included an extremely dangerous method. For Mercury Gild or Fire Guild, an object, the brass or bronze holders were applied to the brass or warm up until Mercury evaporates. When it cools down, the gilded would only leave gold, firmly attached to the mountain. Unfortunately, inhalation of mercury vapors is incredibly toxic, leading to the deaths of most Crafters aged 40 years

Jacques Caffiieri was one of the most famous French designers to use this process. Caffieri already known as a bronze sculptor, has accepted an incredible success. Much of his work was createdfor Louis XV and royal family. One of his best known pieces of Ormol is the toilet built for the royal Versailles Bedchamber. In 1740, Caffiieri's wife received the royal permission for gilded and the cast of bronze in the same workshop that expanded their abilities.

Throughout France and most of Europe, Ormol was used on furniture and sculptures. As Rococo Styles retreated to a simplistic neoclassical form, popularity decreased sharply. 1830, for changes in trend and the danger of the process, poisonous methods of creation from fashion. Glue waxing and disappeared in popularity over the next two centuries, but others were created safer methods to achieve the desired gold coating.

Today, True Ormol is rare and valuable to collectors. Museums around the world have authentic pieces on display 17 to 18. Style and design, although it is definitely nice to look when it is well preserved, it is difficult to escape the shadow of death caused by mercury and ignorance that allowed the process of existingVat for more than a century.