Featured Lead in antique porcelain?

Hi everyone!

New guy here, my name is Sam

My interest in antiques lies in antique wet shaving. I have a few straight razors from the 1800s as well as several safety razors from the late 1800s - early 1900s (I use all of them). I also have a few shaving soap jars from the same time period, which is the reason why I started this thread.

I did some research on contaminants found in antique porcelain and lead kept coming up. Unfortunately, I couldn't come up with a clear answer as to whether or not it is something I should be worried about, seeing as I want to use these to store my shaving soap.

I went ahead and bought a few lead test swabs to see if I could put my mind at ease. The swabs are activated by an orange solution which turns red/pink upon the presence of lead.

The first is my Roger & Gallet. This was made in the 1890s, the company is still in business, and the bottom of the jar is stamped RG and Sarreguemines, which is a province in France known for it's pottery.

Roger & Gallet - 1890s by SamS posted Jul 25, 2019 at 9:33 PM

I swabbed the lid and the inside of the jar and neither the swab or solution residue turned red/pink

I then moved on to my Vinolia jar. This company was formed in the late 1800s and was eventually bought by Unilever. Vinolia was the soap used in all of the first class cabins on the Titanic (you can still get their Titanic soap). The logo matches the Titanic advertising so the jar can be at least dated around 1912, but there is no stamping anywhere on the jar.

Vinolia Shaving Soap by SamS posted Jul 25, 2019 at 9:34 PM

As with the Roger & Gallet, no red/pink on the swab or residue.

The last jar I have is the oldest being from the 1870s by S. Maw, Son, & Son's - London. A lot of history to this company so I won't bore you with the details.

S. Max, Son & Sons - London by SamS posted Jul 25, 2019 at 9:35 PM

I swabbed the lid and all was well but then I swabbed the inside of the jar and while the swab didn't turn pink, the solution residue left on the jar eventually dried and turned pink, which indicates lead

Lead? by SamS posted Jul 25, 2019 at 9:35 PM

I was bummed as I love this jar and it's my largest.

The shaving soap I want to store in these has the consistency of thick, dry paste. It will not come in contact with water when in the jar, and the soap, once lathered on my face, will only be on my skin for no more than 10 minutes. I shave a few times a week, however, so the soap will probably be in these jars for many months.

So, here is why I started this thread:

-Should I be at all worried about storing shaving soap in these jars, irrespective of what the test swabs indicated?
-Are there other contaminants (heavy metals or otherwise) that I should be concerned about?
-Is the last jar a hopeless case?
-Could there still be lead in any of these jars that the swabs couldn't pick up?

I thank you ahead of time for your expert advice on this matter. If any of my historical references are wrong, please feel free to correct me!

 

Welcome, SamS. I love your shaving soap jars. If you're not planning to drink out of them, I really can't see that there is anything to worry about. We have others who share your passion.

 

Not a chemist, or scientist.
Just a person who grew up eating off of lead based enamel dishes. As did many of us here. Probably chewed on lead based painted crib, and who knows what else. Exposed to asbestos in the school ceiling tiles. Still in decent health.


Basically with food items, they are not left on the plate long enough to absorb lead. However, I no longer store acidic items in my old dishes as they tend to leach the lead. And I don't want to ingest it.

So will storing your soap in a lead base container possibly leach lead. Maybe. Question is how long will it stay on your skin? 5 minutes? More? Probably not enough time to do damage to you. You're not going to be eating it.

Our world today, sensationalizes everything that is bad for you.

 

Forgot to say Welcome to the board. And I like your collection of jars.

 

Love the jars Sam !! .. And WELCOME to the board. .. Joy.

 

Hi Sam!

Welcome to Antiquers........

Love the jars!

 

Welcome to the forum, Sam.

 

Welcome to the board!
What if you find a small glass or plastic liner for the jars? Would that work?

 

Hi,
I am not an alarmist. I have eaten off dishes with lead for years also drank enough alcohol from lead crystal. If it is a worry to you you can spray acrylic into your soap dishes to prevent any type of fear. I would worry more about bleeding to death from using a sharp razor..
greg

 

Since you aren't going to eat the shave soap I wouldn't give lead content a second thought. They are awesome!

 

welcome to the forum @SamS
great collection you have there.
as others have mentioned there are likely many other greater concerns than using your porcelain. For those living in older homes, one of the major concerns is with lead paint or lead used in the water pipes. If you're concerned about your health, a simple blood test can reveal your personal lead content... Heck, read the warnings on the medications prescribed for various ailments, and the potential for lead poisoning might be consider safer...

 

Welcome Sam. I think @gregsglass had an excellent idea. There is no reason to expose yourself to lead especially when you might nick yourself while shaving. @Barn Owl's idea is also good. Just put something between the jar and the soap and shave away. Great introduction. Very interesting. Wonderful containers.

 

Hi and WELCOME to ANTIQUERS, Sam!! I LOVE your collection of jars!!!! SO beautiful!!!! There is SO much else in this world to worry about than the remote possibility of even a 'potential' leaching of lead, I say go ahead and SHAVE to your heart's content and store the soap at will !!!!!

 

Compared with driving on the roads here, shaving out of those jars is positively beneficial.

 

Welcome, SamS! Great collection! My understanding was that crazed items were more likely to leach lead. I pretty much agree, though, that compared to the other dangers out there today, lead poisoning from these items is not something I would be too concerned about.
Don

 

Nice jars. Although I guess there may be lead in some glazes, the only caveat I’ve heard about is drinking from lead crystal. You can get a can of clear spray — Krystal Kote or some spelling like that. You may have to re-spray every once in a while, but you’d have a transparent sealant.

 

Thank you all for the warm welcome and the great advice!

You have set my mind at ease I'm going to look for a spray sealant as many of you have suggested, at least for the jar that "tested positive" for lead.

These jars are a rabbit hole as there are dozens of varieties, many having nothing to do with shaving. They're usually called English advertising pot lids and were used to store anything from potted meats all the way to shaving soap.

I can't justify any more than a few for my needs, however, so I'm doing my best not to collect more! We'll see how long that lasts haha.

 

If there is even any lead left at the surface to leach out. If shaving soap has whatever it takes to get it to leach. If you nick yourself, get some soap with a few lead molecules in it into the wound & any bleeding & splashing water on it doesn't wash it all out before anything can get taken into the blood stream. I STILL WOULDN'T WORRY ABOUT IT! If lead poisoning due to shaving soap containers were a significant risk, think we would have heard by now.

From an FDA site about 'traditional' pottery:

When the pottery is fired at the proper temperature for the proper amount of time, essentially all the lead is bound into the glaze. If any migrates to food, it will be an insignificant amount.

Not that the FDA is always the most reliable source on such hazards, but probably more correct than not.

 

u could always grow a beard..!