These solid silver wine coolers come from a set of four
which currently stand on the side table along the south wall of the Square
Dining Room. They were made by Paul Storr of London in 1814 and are decorated
with the 3rd Earl of Egremont’s coat of arms. They were based on the
Warwick Vase, an enormous antique marble which was once owned by the 2nd
Earl of Warwick.
The same questions came up frequently whilst we were
cleaning:
How do you clean the
silver?
We start by flicking the dust off with a soft pony
hair brush. The tarnish is removed by applying a small amount of Goddard’s
silver dip with a cotton bud, which is then washed off with distilled water
before being dried with paper towel.
Silver dip?! I've been told to not used silver dip?
We use the silver dip in a very controlled way. It is
applied with a cotton bud or a barbeque skewer covered in cotton wool for the
more intricate areas, and is immediately washed off with distilled water. Only
a small area of the silver is worked on at a time so we can be sure all the dip
is removed before we move on.
 |
| Caroline is using a barbeque skewer to get into the detail of the silver. |
How often do you clean
them?
As little as possible! We strive to maintain a suitable
balance between keeping the silver aesthetically pleasing for our visitors
whilst ensuring they are properly conserved and looked after. Taking off the
tarnish means removing the top layer of the metal, so the silver is only
cleaned when it really needs it. These specific wine coolers were last cleaned
three years ago.
 |
| This photo shows how tarnished the piece had become over three years. |
It was an absolute pleasure to work on these beautiful
pieces of silver. Visitors often commented on the level of patience needed to work
on the pieces, but we all found it very therapeutic!
Sarah Baldwin
Conservation Assistant
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