Marbling
Marbling is an art which consists in the production of certain patterns and effects by means of colours so prepared as to float upon a preparation of mucilaginous liquid, possessing certain antagonistic properties to the colours prepared for the purpose, and which colours, when so prepared, floated and formed into patterns upon the surface of the liquid, are taken off by laying thereon a piece or sheet of paper or dipping therein the smoothly-cut edges of a book.
It is a process which it is not very easy to describe; and yet, to any one beholding it for the first time, nothing appears more simple or easy of execution. Yet the difficulties are many; and the longer any one practises it, the more he will become convinced that there are many more discoveries to be made before the art can be brought to any thing like perfection or effects produced with that certainty which the workman could desire. In short, it may be said to be still in its infancy.
When the art was first discovered, and by whom, or in what city or country it was first practised, it is hardly possible to determine. It is supposed that we cannot go farther back for its origin than the beginning of the seventeenth century, and that Holland has the honour of being the birthplace of the art,—the old Dutch and some drawn and antique patterns, with stormont and other spots, being considered the most original.
Many years ago this old Dutch paper, in the size of foolscap, was imported into England, wrapped round small parcels of Dutch toys, and thus passed free of duty. When taken off, it was carefully smoothed and sold to bookbinders, commanding a high price, being only used on the better kinds of work. Indeed, so choice was it that you may still see in some old books the inside-linings made of pieces carefully joined together. Something of the art has unfortunately been lost since that time, for both the colours and the execution of some of these old specimens far surpass the best efforts of the most celebrated modern marblers.
It is proposed, however, to show, as clearly and briefly as possible, how it is done and practised at the present day by the best English workmen, and to describe the various processes in such a manner as will enable any individual possessed of a common share of understanding and discernment, to do it himself; and, where there are two ways of doing it, that will be described which experience has pronounced to be easiest and best.
In describing one pattern, that will be considered sufficient to include all of the same class, or that are done in the same manner, although different colours may be used. For instance, a brown may be described, and green, being the same in every respect as regards the mixing and working the colours, may be substituted for the brown; and so in regard to other colours.
COLOURS.
The colours required for marbling are the same as those ordinarily used for painting both in oil and distemper. They should be procured in a dry state, just as they are produced or manufactured, and ground by the marbler himself. A list is subjoined:—
REDS.
Drop Lake.
Peach-wood Lake.
Vermilion.
Rose-Pink.
Oxford Ochre, Burnt.
BLUES.
Indigo.
Chinese Blue.
Ultramarine.
Prussian Blue.
YELLOWS.
Lemon Chrome.
Dutch Pink.
Oxford Ochre, Raw.
BLACKS.
Vegetable Lamp-Black.
Drop Ivory-Black.
BROWN.
Turkey Umber Burnt.
ORANGE.
Orange Lead.
Orange Chrome.
WHITE.
China Clay.
Pipe-Clay.
Flake White.
Paris White.
DROP LAKE.
This is the most beautiful, but the most expensive, of all the reds, and is used only for book-edges and the most superior kinds of work. There are different shades of this colour, viz.:—scarlet, crimson, and purple. The scarlet is the most expensive, and looks the best on edges, possessing a brilliancy which no other colour will produce; but there is a great quantity of a very inferior kind of drop lake about, which is of no use whatever to a marbler, for, when it comes to be worked, it is found to possess no body.
In order to ascertain whether the article about to be purchased will answer, take a piece of the colour, and, breaking it, apply the broken part to the tongue. If it adhere to the tongue, it is very doubtful whether it will do; but if it hold up the moisture without any inclination to adhere, it may be tried with better expectations. This colour is sold in the form of small cones or drops, from which it derives its name, and is a preparation of cochineal; therefore the value of it depends much upon the price of that article.
VERMILION.
This colour is but little used, on account of its great specific gravity, and seldom without being combined with some other colour. It is a preparation of mercury, and, though nominally at a much lower price than lake, yet so little of it goes to a pound, it comes nearly as dear as that article.
ROSE-PINK.
This is a very useful though common colour. It is composed of chalk or whiting coloured with Brazil wood; consequently it is what is termed a fugitive colour, the pink very quickly fading on exposure to the atmosphere or to heat. When combined with indigo or a little Chinese blue it makes a good purple.
BURNT OCHRE.
This colour is obtained in its native state from pits dug in the earth in the neighbourhood of Oxford; hence, it is called Oxford ochre, and sometimes stone ochre. It is in fact a kind of clay, and when made red-hot turns to a kind of red colour. It is one of the most useful colours, and, as the price is low, is extensively used. With the addition of a little black it makes a good brown; with a little blue or indigo it makes a good olive; or it is a good colour used by itself, and is not liable to change.
WOOD LAKE.
This is a preparation of peach-wood, and has only been introduced of late years to the notice of marblers. It is manufactured at Birmingham. This colour is an exception to the rule, as it is sold in the pulp or damp state, and may be mixed and even used without grinding, being made almost exclusively for marbling. It is the best red that can be used for general purposes, and for appearance comes next to the drop lake.
CHINESE BLUE.
This is a very beautiful but not a very durable colour. It is, however, an almost indispensable one to the marbler, as it will produce nearly every shade of blue by the addition of certain proportions of white. This colour requires to be particularly well ground, as indeed do all the blues. It is also sold at some places in the pulp or damp state. There are some very good damp blues made.
INDIGO.
This colour is a most valuable article, and cannot be dispensed with under any consideration. It is too well known to require describing. Though not a bright colour, it is one of the most durable, and for mixing and producing greens and purples of a permanent kind is invaluable. Neither can a good black be made without it. Care should, however, be taken to procure it of the best quality.
ULTRAMARINE.
This is a very beautiful colour, but must be used very sparingly, as it will not glaze or take any kind of polish, and is always inclined to rub off. The kinds now in general use are the French and German, the genuine article being far too high in price for this kind of work.
PRUSSIAN BLUE.
This colour has been of late almost entirely superseded by the Chinese blue, which is a much brighter colour, Prussian blue being darker and heavier looking, and is a very bad colour for glazing.
DUTCH PINK.
This is a common but very useful colour. It is a preparation of whiting and quercitron bark, and is used in making greens, no other colour answering the purpose so well. It is also very useful in mixing with chrome to produce the various shades of yellow required.
CHROME.
This is of various shades, varying from a light lemon colour to a deep orange approaching to a red. It is a useful colour; but, unless you get it genuine, it is very difficult to get it to work properly.
RAW OCHRE,
Or Oxford ochre in its native state. This may be used in certain proportions for making olive tints combined with Dutch pink and blue or black. It is also of use in small quantities to mix with yellow when it is inclined to run off, this colour being of a very adhesive nature.
DROP IVORY-BLACK.
This colour cannot be well used alone. It may, therefore, be called only an auxiliary to others.
VEGETABLE-BLACK.
This is a superior kind of lamp-black, but prepared from vegetable instead of animal matter. It is surprisingly light, and cannot be used alone, and will not produce a black for marbling except in combination with double its weight of good Indigo.
TURKEY UMBER, BURNT.
This colour produces a very good brown, but it is not required if you have the burnt Oxford ochre, as, with the aid of that colour and a little indigo and black, any shade of brown may be produced.
ORANGE LEAD.
This is a very heavy colour, and is but little used, except for the edges of account books.
WHITE.
For this an article called China clay is used; also, for some purposes, the common pipe-clay.
GUM.
Of all the varieties of gum, there is but one that is of any use to the marbler, and that is called gum-tragacanth or gum-dragon. Too much care cannot be exercised in the choice of this article, as much of the excellence of the work depends upon it. It should be large, white, and flaky. Occasionally there will be found some very good in small white flakes; but let that in dark brown lumps be rejected at once, no matter at what price it may be offered. If used at all, it would only do for the most common kind of work; but there is, in reality, no saving in an inferior article, as one pound of a really good sort will go as far as two of a bad, and produce a far more satisfactory result. Good gum ought to dissolve in cold water; it requires at least forty-eight hours soaking, being well stirred about at intervals; but some gums take longer to dissolve. Good gum will produce a smooth surface, but bad gum will often yield a rough one, which is inimical to the purpose. Again, some will give a smooth surface, and yet possess no strength; the colours will flow well upon it and form properly, and, when the paper is taken off, will look, at first, very beautiful, but upon looking at it five or ten minutes after it has been hung up, the colours will be found running off, causing indescribable annoyance and mortification.
DIRECTIONS FOR PREPARING THE GUM.
Procure a large earthen pan, glazed on the inside, capable of containing from eight to twelve gallons of water. Put therein one pound of gum-tragacanth, and on it pour about two gallons of soft water. Stir it every few hours with a clean birch broom kept expressly for the purpose, breaking the lumps and adding more water as it thickens or absorbs that previously put in. In about forty-eight hours you may venture to use it; but seventy-two hours would be better. Some gum is all the better for a longer period, as, although a considerable portion of the gum may be dissolved, yet the best properties of it are not extracted till the whole is dissolved. It must be strained through a fine hair sieve before using, and if any lumps remain, put them back into the pan until they are all dissolved.
OF LINSEED.
It is possible to marble some patterns on mucilage of linseed, but it is a very objectionable vehicle to work upon, and can never be made to produce a satisfactory result. It is made either by boiling one quart of linseed in six or eight gallons of water, or by pouring the boiling water upon the linseed and stirring it until it extracts the mucilaginous properties of the seed; but it very soon decomposes or turns to water.
CARRAGEEN, OR IRISH MOSS.
This is an article used by some, and can be dispensed with altogether: it is not a necessary article. When used, it should be picked (the white being the best) and well washed; then set it to simmer in a gentle heat for an hour or two, strain it through a fine hair sieve, and it will be ready for use; but it will require a portion of the solution of gum-tragacanth to be able to do much with it.
FLEA-SEED.
This is an article but little known except to those who have occasion to use it. It is a small, brown, hard seed, in size, shape, and colour closely resembling the annoying little insect whose name it bears, and from which it may possibly derive its appellation. It produces a very strong and powerful mucilage—far stronger than that which can be obtained from linseed; and what enhances its value is that it will not so soon lose its strength or turn to water, but will keep several days. It is a great assistant, mixed with gum, in the making of French and Spanish marbles, but is a total enemy to nonpareil and drawn patterns.
To prepare it, put a quarter of a pound of the seed into a pan, pour upon it a gallon of boiling water, keep it well stirred for ten minutes, and let it stand for half an hour; then stir it again for ten minutes more, and in another half-hour add another gallon of boiling water, stirring it as before, at intervals, for one hour; after which let it remain, and the seed will settle at the bottom of the pan. When cold, pour off the top for use, and the seed will bear more boiling water, though not so much as at first. Sometimes the seed will yield a third extract; but this must be determined by your judgment, as the seed, when exhausted, will lose its viscid property, and must then be thrown away. The seed should never be stirred up after it has cooled, for it will settle without being again heated or having more boiling water added to it.
OX-GALL.
The surest way of obtaining this article genuine is by procuring it in the bladder as it is taken from the animal, if you are acquainted with any butcher upon whom you can depend. The gall from some animals is very thick, but will, after keeping some time, get thin, without at all losing its properties; in fact, gall is all the better for being kept, and is none the worse for a strong smell.
WATER.
Soft or rain water, when it can be procured, is the best adapted for all the preparations in marbling.
OF THE PREPARATIONS OR VEHICLES REQUIRED
FOR MARBLING UPON.
For Spanish, French, Italian, West End, and British patterns, there will be required a mixture of gum-tragacanth and the mucilage of flea-seed, in the proportions of one quart of the latter to two gallons of the former. Beat them well up together till they are thoroughly mixed or incorporated with each other, strain it through a fine hair sieve into the trough, and it will be fit for use.
For Dutch, nonpareil, curls, antiques, and, in short, all patterns which require to be formed with any kind of instrument on the preparation in the trough, use nothing but the pure solution of the gum-tragacanth; in fact, you may marble all the patterns on this alone, so that if there be any difficulty in procuring the other articles, and you can procure good gum, you may do any or all of the patterns upon it, although some of them are improved by the addition of the mucilage of the flea-seed.
As some gum is stronger than other, it is hardly prudent or possible to give any exact weight of gum to any certain quantity of water. Practice and your own judgment must determine this. Besides, if the gum be not sufficiently soaked or beaten up, it will not yield so much or so good size as it would were it in its right state. The following will give some idea to guide in the matter:—If, on skimming the surface and sprinkling on the colours, they lose their shape and appear to turn round on the solution, especially in the corners of the trough, it is a sign that it is too thin; if, on the other hand, on skimming there is a great resistance when the skimmer is drawn along, and, upon sprinkling on the colours, they crack, and are a long while spreading out, it is a sign it is too thick; but a little practice will soon enable the learner to form a correct judgment in this matter.
OF GRINDING THE COLOURS.
On this head you must be very particular indeed; for, if the colours are not finely or properly ground, it cannot be expected that the work will look well. When a large quantity is required, a colour-mill is the most advantageous method; but if on a small scale, or for edges, the ordinary stone and muller will be best adapted for the purpose. Indeed, all colours required for edges ought to be most particularly well ground upon a slab, with a muller, the mill not grinding so finely as by this method.
The colours must all be ground with a preparation of beeswax, in the average proportion of one ounce of the prepared beeswax to one pound of colour. Blues and greens require rather more. This will prevent the colour rubbing off on the hand, and will make it burnish or glaze easily.
DIRECTIONS FOR PREPARING THE WAX FOR
GRINDING.
To attempt to grind beeswax in its native state would be a fruitless task, as it would stick to the stones and not unite with the other ingredients. To obviate this, prepare it in the following manner: Take of the very best beeswax two pounds, put it in an earthen pipkin, and with it a quarter of a pound of the very best curd-soap cut into small or thin pieces; place it in a moderate heat, and when both soap and wax are quite dissolved, (but be sure they are not boiling,) put the pipkin containing the hot liquid upon a table, take in one hand a pot of cold water, and, gently stirring the melted wax with the other, pour in the water, a little at a time, keeping it constantly stirred, and it will gradually thicken, until at last it can hardly be stirred at all. Care must be taken not to have it too hot when the water is poured in, as there is danger of it flying out of the pipkin and scalding the workman. If properly mixed, when cool, it can be pulverized between the finger and thumb; and in this state it will mix or grind with the colour easily, but ought to be rubbed or worked in with the dry colour before wetting it for grinding.
TROUGHS.
The troughs should be made of wood, perfectly flat and smooth at the bottom, and of sufficient thickness to keep them from warping. They should be about two and a half inches deep inside, and about two inches larger than the sheet of paper you intend marbling, or your edges will be imperfect. There should be about three inches parted off on the right-hand side by a sloping partition, which should be about an eighth of an inch below the sides, that the waste may be skimmed over it without running it over the top. The whole should be perfectly level and true; and, if the joints are stopped with white lead, be sure it is quite dry and hard, or it will entirely spoil the solution, and will fill the pattern with white.
FRENCH OR SHELL MARBLE.
To commence with the easiest and most common kinds of marbled papers:—the colours being properly ground, and the trough placed on a level table or fixed bench of convenient height, with some feet of spare room on each side, place the pots containing the colours on the right-hand side, and the paper or books to be marbled on the left. Let there be a small brush in each of the pots of vein-colours, and a larger one in the last or body-colour. Have a small iron rod or bar about twelve or fourteen inches long, placed so that you may be able to take it up when required with the left hand. Fill the trough to about one-half or three-quarters of an inch from the top with the solution of gum-tragacanth and flea-seed, as previously described, and proceed to mix the colours.
For convenience of reference, the various patterns described and processes employed will be numbered.