Ormolu

At a glance

• Family: Chinoiserie & Gilding
• Periods most often found: Most date from 1780 to 1900.
• Typical price: about $1,000; range $200 to $10,000 and more for exceptional pieces
• What drives value: Gilding quality, maker

What it is

Ormolu (bronze doré) is cast bronze that has been chased and gilded, one of the great French decorative arts. It was used for furniture mounts, clocks, candelabra, chenets, chandeliers and table centerpieces. Until the mid-19th century, gilding used a mercury amalgam heated off the bronze (fire gilding), a dangerous process that gave a deep, warm gold; from the 1840s electrogilding replaced it. Paris bronziers such as Gouthière, Thomire and later Barbedienne and Beurdeley raised the craft to its height.

How to identify and date it

Mercury gilding has a warm, rich color, often with darker and brighter areas from burnishing and matting, and survives in recesses even when worn on high points; electrogilt is brighter, thinner and more uniform. Fine chasing (hand-tooled detail in leaves, hair and textures) distinguishes quality bronze from spelter or gilded brass, which are lighter and softer. Check for wear, replacements, loose mounts and regilding.

Periods and styles

Most date from 1780 to 1900.

How much is it worth?

On the US retail market, most ormolu examples ask around $1,000. Simple or worn pieces start near $200, while documented, signed or exceptional examples can pass $10,000. The main value drivers are: gilding quality, maker. These are indicative ranges, not an appraisal; see our price guide for French antiques for the method.

Before you buy

• Check gilding and chasing
• Test weight and material
• Look for replacements

Living with it

Ormolu mounts bring light to dark mahogany and rosewood furniture; an ormolu clock or candelabra is the jewel of a mantel.