Bronze or Spelter? How to tell the difference with David Harper

Bronze or Spelter - I’ll show you how you can tell the difference by showing you two antique sculptures. One is bronze, the other is spelter
Bronze, in almost all cases is worth substantially more than Spelter. But, telling the two metals apart is actually quite easy once you know how
Thanks for watching!
Cheers
David Harper
Get in touch with me here:
www.david-harper.uk
#bronze #spelter #davidharper #antiquebronze #antiquesroadtrip #antiquesroadshow #bargainhunt #antiquebronzes #antiquespelter #whatisspelter #whatisbronze

[@Neil2022]

Thanks for the heads up David! Great video as usual.

[@southcop3714]

thanks for the heads up!! Congrats!!

[@eddiehowarth8123]

Thanks David good advice

[@Print229]

This is excellent. Thank you.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

You're very welcome!

[@sallyhinkley1177]

Very clearly explained thank you

[@happyoldsoul6535]

Thank you!

[@stlawrenceriverrat]

Really appreciate this video, really informative & helpful with respect to not being taken advantage of, deliberately or otherwise, when looking to buy a bronze. o/

[@meroweg2685]

Thank you! The only item from my great-grandparents I possess is a pocket watch holder with a base and pillar that seem to be green onyx, and on top of it an eagle (French 2nd Empire style) in golden metal. Scratched it in a hidden place between the legs, it's still golden. So now I know it's not spelter. Could still be brass, hope you'll eventually make a bronze vs brass video. Thanks anyway this was very informative.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

My pleasure. Cheers

[@pauldennehy104]

Thanks David

[@helenabiesma5560]

brilliant tips for thinking off lovv both pieces though

[@maggiemitchell4359]

Very interesting thank you

[@welshartnow]

Vey clear explanation thank you

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

You are welcome

[@ddunvideo]

Thanks for the insight

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

My pleasure!

[@DavidB5501]

I've frequently seen or heard it stated that spelter is lighter than bronze, but the reasons for this are seldom explained. The main constituent element in spelter is zinc, while that in bronze is copper. Zinc is indeed lighter per unit volume than copper, but only in a ratio of about 7:9, which is hardly a dramatic difference, and it is partially offset by the fact that spelter often also contains the very heavy metal lead. I have seen it stated by John Bly (a great expert on antique wooden furniture, but not on metals!) that spelter has an 'aerated' texture, which might explain a difference in weight per volume, but I haven't found any supporting evidence for that. I think David Harper has probably hit the nail on the head by pointing out that spelter is often more thinly cast than bronze. Obviously that could give a spelter object a much lighter weight that a bronze one of similar external shape, but if so it is the technique of casting, not the inherent weight of the metal, that explains it. Zinc has a much lower melting point (about 400 degrees C) than copper, so it was possible to swish molten zinc around the inside of the mould in a way you wouldn't want to try with molten copper at 1000 degrees C!

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

One of the best replies to a video ever! Thank you for that information. D

[@DavidB5501]

I just found a possible explanation for John Bly's comment about 'aerated' spelter in a Wiki article on 'Pot metal' (a term often used for spelter). It says that the low boiling point of zinc and fast cooling of newly cast parts often traps air bubbles within the cast part. It also says 'The primary advantage of pot metal is that it is quick and easy to cast. Because of its low melting temperature, it requires no sophisticated foundry equipment or specialized molds'. I'm sure I've seen somewhere that a common technique was to pour molten spelter into a hollow mould and swirl it around until a thin layer of metal had solidified. 'Quick and easy' indeed!

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

@@DavidB5501 Love the pot metal description. That’s such an old fashioned way of describing it, but brilliant…I’m going to re-introduce the word!

[@user-xx5ox5gd2v]

Hi David, found this fascinating. How would I clean a Spelter item? Thank you.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

The same method would do no harm…thanks for watching

[@crazyguy_1233]

Great video. I found it interesting because I own two items one of bronze and one of spelter. The spelter item is much larger yet the bronze item weighs more than the spelter item even though it’s so much smaller. I got an amazing deal on the bronze item it was only $100 USD but I cannot find an artist’s name on it. The base is either black marble or slate. The spelter item I believe was at one time a newel post lamp that got damaged. Its old light post was replaced at some point with a table lamp post before I got it due to the original snapping off. That one is a Moreau and I’m aware they were mass producing them in the early 1900s though I haven’t found an exact casting of mine only very similar ones. I’m honestly more interested in finding out about my bronze one though. I think it may have been French and I’ve only ever seen one other example of it and it was on a clock though the base was different.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

Yes, the bronze piece is the one with any sort of potential for value…it’s a long internet search I’m afraid. They’ll be something there somewhere!

[@crazyguy_1233]

@@DavidHarperAntiquesTV I’ll have to keep looking over it maybe I’ll find some makers mark or something. It’s not a piece I’m ever going to sell but it’s something I’d be interested in finding the history on.

[@OriginalNethead]

First, look underneath if possible.(LOL) That silver color is a dead giveaway, one reason anything stuck to a base is suspect. Bronzes in my limited experience tend to be so darned heavy nobody bothers.

[@annbow4064]

HIi David I was wondering if they ever made a antelope bust with both bronze and spelter,I read about the different sounds they make,if I hit the horns with metal they ring a light sound,but if I hit the main statue it's a dull thud.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

Hi Ann, it’s more likely just a different thickness in the metal whether Spelter or bronze

[@alfredmolison7134]

I'm halfway through and I haven't heard what spelter is generally made of. What does it tend to be?

[@barbarathompson1496]

I have a bronze or maybe spelter figures of two linked sumo wrestlers. They are posed with one throwing the other They can be separated. Have you ever seen anything similar.

[@joanfreestone1707]

Hello David. We have a small statue of Tutankhamun's mask that we bought in the 70s in Egypt. I believe it is made of spelter but it could be anything. It keeps getting a white powdery-looking substance in the grooves of the headpiece. Could you shed any light onto what this might be please? Thanks.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

Far more likely to be Spelter. Do the scratch test if you can, that’ll tell you

[@joanfreestone1707]

@@DavidHarperAntiquesTVThank you, David. Any idea what the white stuff might be that accumulates in the grooves?

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

@@joanfreestone1707 I’ve no idea. Could be old polish?

[@davidedwinhoneywill2611]

I have 2 Auguste Moreau spelter statues, c1900 i'm told, which were painted as the patina was in a bad way. I am busy removing the paint and want to restore and repatina them. Any advice? I live in Welkom South Africa.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

The Spelter will likely look quite grey once you’ve removed the paint. Try dark brown beeswax polish (don’t use cheap silicon polish) to give it a bit of life and lustre

[@Dianne-uv3bs]

I saw two spelter vases on sale for 25 dollars .I. thinking they are a good deal

[@cygnuxx-147]

Since Spelter is a Zinc/Lead alloy ( I think ), is it toxic to handle like lead is? or does the Zinc do something to nullify that?

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

not that I know of - certainly never heard anyone say it was toxic

[@cygnuxx-147]

@@DavidHarperAntiquesTV Ok thanks. I wasn't sure with the lead included.

[@tmtb80]

​@@cygnuxx-147 don't eat it!!!

[@sagepeace9088]

The liberty bell .

[@HappyQuailsLC]

Please inform us of what “spelter” is as compared with Bronze from the start. 5 minutes in you are explaining its differences but I am guessing at what it actually is

[@aliaed6054]

the make ?

[@kurjan1]

Doesn't bronze have a ring to it if you tap it with you finger nail or something similar? Sort of like crystal.

[@billg7531]

I just saw that sphinx statue on an antiques show in the UK by someone called Susan Calman. She was working with three of the Road Trip/Bargain Hunt antique experts. The show had the statue on a wood base and they recommended that the owner put it on a marble base before selling it. I wonder if it is the same statue. In the show, I think they said the statue was bronze though.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

No, definitely not the same one. Hardly worth changing the base though!

[@KaraboudjanTimes]

what about brass? the bronze in your video colour is like brass, brass is heavy, brass coloured bronze and brass , does the scratch test still work, and what if theres no place to scratch without marking it, presuming you don't have anothern piece to compare weight?

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

Brass is very similar to bronze. This is where it gets a little more tricky and experience comes into it. When I find a good comparison (brass / bronze) I’ll make a vid

[@pauldennehy104]

Yes would be great to see video for brass v bronze, thank you

[@kingafendikingafendi8897]

Straight to the point you can make many fall asleep 🧐

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

After 20 years on British TV and 2 years on KZbin, I’m confident I’ve made millions of people fall asleep!

[@kingafendikingafendi8897]

@@DavidHarperAntiquesTV I like your honesty keep going dude 👍😜😂🤣

[@kennethsplitstone1054]

Who are some news reporting agencies that like to handle counterfeit bronze stories? I bought an expensive fake and the seller is suing me for a bad review. I would like to give him some more exposure for selling me a fake and calling it original.

[@nataliebutler]

That bronze looks like brass to me. I thought bronze was a darker, less golden colour.

[@skiracer]

Dear David Harper, poor Spelter...always gets a bad rap huh? Sorry Spelter, we love you for all the rejection parts you've played in Bargain Hunt, Flog it, ART, Road Shows etc.. Maybe one day you'll be a real bronze!! Think positive

[@funnysubs2020]

Bronze is not gold! Even silver is not gold. So zinc, brass, copper, silver... these are all cheap metals and you don't have to treat them so seriously when you come to buy a work of art. By the way, the bronze sculpture you saw here is not worth more than 20 dollars in material. So bronze shmonze... buy art, not material. If you like the piece, just buy it, even if it's made of iron. Focus of course on art deco, it's a timeless style that can come in any type of metal and it's a shame to waste energy on whether it's one cheap metal or another. There are an amazing sculptures made of iron and there are many ugly art nouveau made of bronze, I'll take the iron, thanks.

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

bronze sculptures are almost without exception more valuable than any piece made from spelter or iron etc.

[@funnysubs2020]

​@@DavidHarperAntiquesTVwho cares david my man. are you buying art or material ? they are all cheap materials. me personally, i don't care. i rather buy a zinc piece that excites me than a gold plated boring statue. but again, this is me.

[@johnhetherington8830]

Get on with it baldy

[@DavidHarperAntiquesTV]

Happy Christmas!