Sulphur inlay

[Shreckmeister]

Has anyone seen rifles with sulphur inlay?
Sulphur inlay is a rarely-used technique for decorative surface inlay in wooden cabinetmaking.

The technique originates in the 18th century, but was only used for a short period. Between 1765 and around 1820, German immigrant cabinetmakers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania used it to decorate the surface of chests. The Deitrich chest of 1783 is now in the Smithsonian.[1]

Commercial reproducers of such chests may rarely re-create this inlay technique as well.
The inlay technique is simple. A small groove is carved into the surface of the wood, then molten sulphur is poured into the groove. Once cooled and hard, the surface may easily be scraped flush. [3]

Sulphur is used as it has a low-melting point, which may be easily achieved on a hotplate. This also reduces any risk of charring the wood. On cooling, sulphur also expands slightly, locking it into place.

The colour of the sulphur inlay is a pale yellow or off-white. Overheating the sulphur causes it to darken to brown, along with noxious fumes and the risk of fire. When studying historical examples, antiquarians unfamiliar with sulphur inlay have mistaken it for varieties of beeswax or white lead

[Rich N.]

Suskat,

I have been following the topic of sulphur inlay as it has appeared on this list from time to time.  I have never heard of the technique used on rifles until it arose on this list.  In the fall of 1977 Monroe Fabian wrote an article on Sulfer Inlay in Pennsylvania German Furniture for Pennsylvania Folklife magazine and discussed the process of creating that furniture and inlay in that article.  Only 22 pieces of furniture were recorded by Fabian (9 were blanket chests) and he felt it was a rare process even in its day.  He found the technique used in SE Pennsylvania as well as a piece from North Carolina and one from West Virginia.  Five of the known pieces were tested by the Smithsonian for the exact content of the inlay, and all test pieces were much as you describe.  Fabian never mentioned this technique in rifles.  I own one of the chests that was tested by the Smithsonian (dated 1792 for Frederich Schweizer)
and would question how durable the inlay would have been for use in a rifle.  The inlay on my chest is about 3/8" deep which would seemingly have been too deep for a rifle inlay.  It's fragile nature would seem that it would not be an ideal technique for rifles which received a lot of heavy use.  I sure hope that if someone does know of rifles using this process, that they will share it with the list.

Rich

[mkeen]

Suskat,
  Only 22 pieces of furniture were recorded by Fabian (9 were blanket chests) and he felt it was a rare process even in its day. 

Rich

The number of pieces of furniture with sulfur inlay is now up to over one hundred. It includes chests, schranks or clothespresses, clock cases, chest of drawers and a straightedge.

Mart Keen

[Shreckmeister]

I'm thinking about taking this rifle to Baltimore on Saturday for the show.
Maybe someone there can confirm sulphur or not.

[eastwind]

In my exhibit - BERKS COUNTY LONG RIFLES held in Reading in 2009, there were two rifles by Jacob George (#23 and #24 in the Exhibit book) which had off white/cream color material of some sort inserted into the carved areas. In particular, rifle #24 from the Kutztown Historical Society showed the inserted material in a more obvious way as that gun was in original condition with no hint of restoration. The material is obvious in the photo in the book.

I hesitate to call the material, "sulphur", but it did look a bit like it. I have discussed this rifle with Winterthur curators and they were to examine the gun now back at the Historical Society, but I've not heard what they concluded.

Rifle #23 by George (a "spitting image" of #24 in design) does not show the white material, which may or may not be the result of cleaning many years ago...and perhaps it never had the material inserted. Both guns are signed and dated 1817 and confirm gunsmiths did indeed make the same "model" almost exactly the same (in the same year) for their markets.

The Kutztown Historical Society's George rifle is one of very few rifles with such inserted material.

Patrick Hornberger

[J1776]

Very interesting,.. I'll have to hunt up some more info on this.

[spgordon]

There is a superb exhibit at Winterthur right now called "Paint, Pattern, and People," and there is an entire section--perhaps six or seven items--under the heading of "sulphur inlay." The massive exhibit catalog devotes six pages to a discussion of "Localisms in Ornament: Sulphur Inlay of Lancaster County."