Brass has been with us for centuries. A mixture of copper and zinc, it was valued early on for its durability and workability and used for everything from tools, hardware, to vessels and decorative objects. By the medieval and early modern periods, brass candlesticks, bowls, fittings, and other household objects could be found throughout Europe, though they were often costly possessions rather than everyday goods often reserved for royal courts and the Church.
In Britain, brass production expanded considerably during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. New Brassworks were established, particularly around Bristol and Birmingham, and improved manufacturing gradually made the material available for a wider range of household objects. Candlesticks were among the most recognizable. Early examples were often cast in simple forms, including the wonderfully named trumpet candlestick, before becoming increasingly varied and elaborate.
The Industrial Revolution transformed brass once again. Further advances in manufacturing during the 19th century made brass hardware, lighting, fixtures, and decorative objects easier and less expensive to produce. By the Victorian era, polished brass had become a familiar presence in the home, appearing on everything from candlesticks and fireplace accessories to door hardware, lamps, and furniture.
Its popularity has ebbed and flowed ever since. The 20th century saw brass move through the geometric glamour of Art Deco, wartime restrictions on metals, and a postwar return to the home. By the 1970s and 1980s, gleaming brass had become nearly ubiquitous turning up on lamps, tables, beds, knobs, and bathroom fixtures. A generation later, much of it was replaced by chrome and brushed nickel as tastes changed once again.
And yet brass returned.
Today, polished, aged, and unlacquered finishes comfortably coexist. Perhaps that is the best argument for brass as a timeless material: it has never belonged entirely to one period or style. It can be formal or familiar, highly polished or deeply patinated, centuries old or newly made—and somehow, it continues to find its way back into our homes.
Why We Collect Brass
Brass is fun to collect! Brass takes seemingly endless forms: candlesticks, sail boats, ash trays, book ends, trivets, lamps travel souvenirs, trinket boxes, and so much more. Brass is decorative without being precious and its varied shapes, styles, and color can blend with many décor styles.
Brass objects are relatively easy to find and approachable to collectors at many price points. Pieces turn up at flea markets, antique shops, thrift stores, and estate sales. A collection can start with something like a trinket or candlestick and blossom over time, one find at a time.
The variety is the appeal, in both form and finish. Shiny brass can sit next to aged, darkened patinaed brass mixing together to create a collection of storied objects found over time.
What to Look For
There are a few key considerations when hunting for brass. Forget what your mother told you as a child, always pick items up! Brass objects will have different weights often with older objects having heavier weight than later mass-produced items.
Turn the piece over and look for a maker’s mark, a sign or symbol, an item was manufactured by a certain person or company. These marks often provide a starting point for learning more about the item including its country of origin, when it was made, and who it was made by. As you shop for brass you will come across names like Baldwin and Virginia Metalcrafters commonly. Both are American companies that sell or sold brass objects with the latter producing high-quality reproductions of colonial and early American designs. Country of origin can provide clues about when and how the item was produced with common countries being England, United States, India, Italy and Taiwan, with British made designs often fetching a higher price.
When shopping for brass, condition is important, but perfection rarely exists. Many of the items, regardless of their age, were meant to be functional items. Small scratches, slight discoloration, darkened crevices, and uneven surfaces are all normal signs of wear. Exercise caution with cracked, damaged, highly corroded, unstable pieces, or pieces missing essential parts.
And of course, finally, tarnish is expected when shopping for brass. Tarnish is caused by the copper alloys that make up brass reacting to moisture, temperature, and chemicals in the air. The result is the dark, aged brass that many find aesthetically pleasing. Brass can be easily polished to a bright shiny finish using readily available products like Brasso or Wright’s Copper Cleaner.
Most importantly, ask yourself when shopping “would I want this item in my home?”. Buying the items you love, for their shape, proportions, finish, or other qualities, makes your space far more special.
To Polish or Not to Polish….
Before diving into the great debate of to polish brass or not, let’s understand the difference between cleaning and polishing. Found items almost always need to be cleaned. Deposits of dust, oils, and candle wax almost always remain on found items. We recommend starting with some warm water, a touch of gentle soap, and a microfiber cloth to properly clean items ensuring that you dry them immediately to prevent water from sitting on the surface.
Once the item is cleaned, you can determine whether to polish the surface. A lot of this decision depends on personal style as much as the item itself. Some items with nooks and crevices look better with patina and age, while sleeker, more modern designs may benefit from being polished to a reflective shine.
Part of that decision comes down to understanding patina, tarnish, and verdigris.
Patina is the surface character an object develops through age, handling, oxidation, and exposure to its environment. On brass, it may appear as warm honey tones, deeper brown areas, softened highlights, and darker color settled into crevices. These variations are often what give an older piece its depth and character.
Tarnish is the discoloration that occurs as the metal reacts with substances in its environment. It may appear as dullness, uneven darkening, spots, or areas that have become nearly black. Tarnish can become part of an attractive patina, so its presence doesn't necessarily mean a piece needs to be polished away.
Verdigris is different. The distinctive blue-green material sometimes found on brass and other copper-containing objects is a product of corrosion. It often appears around seams, bases, handles, and crevices where moisture and residue may have collected. Unlike ordinary darkening or tarnish, active corrosion deserves attention.
Before polishing, also determine whether you're working with solid brass, brass plating, or a lacquered finish. Aggressive polishing can wear through thin brass plating, while lacquered brass requires a different approach.
To polish brass, you will need a brass cleaner of your choice (our preference is Wright’s Copper Cream”), gloves, microfiber clothes, soft-bristle toothbrush, and cotton swabs. Apply a thin layer of the cream rubbing with just enough pressure to remove the tarnish, it generally comes off easily. You can use a toothbrush or cotton swab to get into hard to reach or detailed areas. Rinse the cream away with water and dry with a soft towel or microfiber. Stubborn areas may require special attention or reapplication of the polish.
Regardless of how brightly you choose to polish it, a collection of brass gathered over time brings warmth and character to a home. Mixing periods, styles, sizes, shapes, and finishes gives a collection depth that a perfectly matched set rarely achieves.
Ultimately, the goal is simply to surround yourself with objects you enjoy living with. A candlestick found for a few dollars at a thrift store, an expensive antique, and a brass box inherited from a family member can all find their place on the same shelf. Over time, their histories begin to mingle with your own, and the collection becomes as much about where you found the pieces and how you have lived with them as where they began.