VERMEIL

also called Silver Gilt, gilded silver produced either by the fire-gilding method or by electrolysis. In the former, earlier method the object is covered with an amalgam of gold and mercury; the mercury evaporates when the piece is fired, leaving a gold deposit. In the latter method, the silver object is wired as the cathode and a bar of gold as the anode, and both are immersed in an electrolytic solution; when an electric current is passed, gold ions are deposited on the silver object (cathode). After fire-gilding or electrolysis, the silver gilt is burnished, usually with a polished agate stone.