Featured Bakelite Bead Necklace?

Discussion in 'Jewelry' started by TonyB, Mar 27, 2024.

  1. TonyB

    TonyB New Member

    I have this unusual necklace that reacts strangely when tested with simichrome, rather than the usual brown yellow reaction it produces a brown red reaction on the cotton bud. The beads are unaffected by the testing and it doesn't seem to be any dye or colouring coming from the beads themselves.

    Curious if anyone has come across a similar reaction while testing for bakelite?

    IMG_7882.jpeg IMG_7883.jpeg IMG_7884.jpeg IMG_7885.jpeg
     
  2. wlwhittier

    wlwhittier Well-Known Member

    No, never seen anything other than the usual off-yellow reaction.
    Those are beautiful...of course! I see no closure in your pics...are they an unbroken string, or is there a closure hidden in there somewhere?
    That red is an odd shade for bakelite, to my eyes anyway.
     
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  3. Dessert58

    Dessert58 Well-Known Member

    That red on the cotton bud is a bit bizarre, because to me the beads look like they might be bakelite.
    These are nice beads!
    Do they have an odour when you rub them?
    Maybe they could be that famous faturan AJ and I talked about in a previous post.
    The post is somewhere here on the forum.
     
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  4. evelyb30

    evelyb30 Well-Known Member

    Red bakelite doesn't usually test worth a darn, although I've gotten lucky with baking soda a few times. All that comes off from bakelite beads is the oxidation, so there wouldn't be red on the q-tip. Some funky acrylics will do that though. Maybe lucite too?
     
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  5. charlie cheswick

    charlie cheswick Well-Known Member

    i've had that result with acrylics as evey mentioned. if you cant smell anything i doubt its bakelite, agee it wouldn't leave a red mark either
     
  6. Curioser

    Curioser Well-Known Member

    Very curious. I think Faturan is a possibility. Maybe the previous Antiquers post has some testing options?
     
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  7. TonyB

    TonyB New Member

    Thanks for everyone's help so far, here's some more information I've managed to discover: when lightly filing an inconspicuous area near a bead hole it revealed a lighter orange material underneath, and when looking at other areas of older damage, the surface appears to have returned to a red colour, showing signs that the material oxidises to a darker red over time?-

    IMG_0567.JPG
     
  8. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    That colour change, especially to cherry red, is characteristic of many types of faturan. However, the red simichrome test is very unusual.
     
    Last edited: Mar 28, 2024
  9. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Last edited: Mar 28, 2024
  10. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    does the string have a red tinge to it......or is that just the photo?
     
    Dessert58 likes this.
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