See figs. 293, 304, 343, 365.
Generic term referring to the application of a different metal to the surface of a sculpture by a variety of means (mechanical, chemical, electrochemical). Typically, gold and silver are used to plate sculptures, but nickel, zinc, and tin have been used for aesthetic and/or protective reasons. When the applied metal is gold or an alloy of gold, it is referred to as .
Sources
Cultural Heritage: Salter, C. J., and B. J. J. Gilmour. n.d. “Glossary of Terms Used in the Study of Ancient Metal-Working and Associated Processes.” Materials Science-Based Archaeology Group, Department of Materials, University of Oxford.
Copper Industry: Brunhuber, Ernst. 1988. Gießerei-Fachwörterbuch = Foundry Dictionary. 4th ed. Berlin: Schiele & Schön.
Translations
French:
placage métallique
Terme générique décrivant toute application d’une couche métallique exogène à la surface d’un bronze.
Note: La , l’argenture, et dans une moindre mesure l’étamage sont les pratiques de placage les plus fréquentes rencontrées sur les bronzes.
Sources
Cultural Heritage: Baudry, Marie Thérèse, and Dominique Bozo. 1978. La sculpture: Méthode et vocabulaire. Principes d’analyse scientifique. Paris: Impr. nationale., 657; Darque-Ceretti, Évelyne, and Marc Aucouturier. 2012. Dorure: décor et sublimation de la matière. Paris: Mines ParisTech – Presses des Mines.
German:
Plattierung
In German, Plattierung (the result) and Plattieren (the action) are specific to obtaining the adhesion of a (noble) plate on a (less noble) substrate by mechanical pressure via hammering, rolling, friction. Plattierung may actually not be applicable for sculpture. In German the construction Ver + metal + ung is preferred: Vergoldung, Versilberung, Verkupferung, Verzinnung, Verzinkung.
Source
Wallack, August. 1840. Vollständiges Handbuch des Gürtlers und Bronzearbeiters. Vol. 108. Neuer Schauplatz der Künste und Handwerke. Weimar, Germany: Bernh. Fr. Voigt., 191–219
Italian:
placcatura
Sources
“Treccani - La Cultura Italiana - Enciclopedia.” n.d. Accessed April 4, 2023. https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/., under placcatura; Battaglia, S. 1961. Grande dizionario della lingua italiana. Edited by Giorgio Bárberi Squarotti. Turin, Italy: Unione tipografico-editrice torinese. http://www.gdli.it/., under placcatura [vol. 13, 626]
Chinese: 镀覆
Source
Ming Juxin | 明举新. 2001. 汉英冶金工业词典 = Han ying yejin gongye cidian = A Comprehensive Chinese-English Dictionary of Metallurgical Industry. 3rd ed. 长沙市: 中南大学出版社 = Changsha shi: Zhongnan daxue chuban she [Zhong Nan University Press]., 327