Patina

[Peter Brydon]

I have always thought it rather strange the way that a lot of medal collectors consider that so called "toning" on silver medals is desirable and some dealers seem to think that, for example, when for example a WW1 British War Medal is virtually black,it is a selling point.

It seems to me that there is an argument that medals should be kept in the same state that they were when issued and/ or worn but I seem to be guilty of double standards when it comes to badges.

When I first started collecting badges I would polish new acquisitions and keep them in a polished state. I soon decided that that was not the way to go and for a long time all I have done is remove the worse gunge and verdigrise from new acquisitions before putting them in glazed frames and making the frames as airtight as possible.

The thead on the hall marked silver Liverpool Pals badge which appears to have had a brooch fitting removed,replacement lugs fitted and then chemically cleaned made me think about a badge I recently acquire which needed a repair.

The silver plated Liverpool Volunteer Borough Guard pouch belt plate in the pictures was in two pieces,the liver bird having broken off. The repair by a local jeweller is superb but the item needed to be chemically cleaned after the repair to remove the marks caused by the application of heat during the repair.

The badge now looks as if it was made yesterday ( indeed as it would have looked when new ) so I am wondering if I should have had the item repaired.

Years ago I had the missing lugs on a Liverpool Pals shoulder title replaced and that item was chemically cleaned after by the chap who put the lugs on it for me. For a considerable time that one title stood out from the rest until it developed a patina which took the shine off it.

Patina seems to be one of the characteristics that fellow collectors look for in considering if an item is genuine and I wonder how important other collectors think the patina of a badge is ?

P.B.