A Select Collection of Valuable and Curious Arts and Interesting Experiments


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(3.9 stars; 4 reviews)

This collection of projects and experiments was submitted by Rufus Tuttle, following an Act of Congress promoting education and learning. The projects were designed to be entertaining and educational, at a relatively low cost. - Summary by Lynne T (3 hr 3 min)

Chapters

Water-proof gilding and silvering, The art of burnish gilding, Ornamental bronze gilding 8:20 Read by Lynne T
To enamel picture glasses with gold, To wash iron or steel with gold, To wash brass or copper with silver, To give wood a gold, silver, or copper lustre, To print gold letters on morocco 6:09 Read by prajak
To dye silk a brilliant gold colour, To dye silk a brilliant silver colour, 3:18 Read by prajak
To silver looking glasses,To write on paper with gold or silver, 4:03 Read by Adam Starks
To make good shining black ink, Blue ink, Red ink, Yellow ink, Green ink, Purple ink, To write in various colours with the same pen, ink and paper. 6:27 Read by prajak
Sympathetic inks for secret correspondence 2:27 Read by Availle
Luminous ink that will shine in the dark, To make a writing appear and disappear at pleasure, To make a writing vanish and another appear in its place, To restore old writing that is nearly defaced, 3:00 Read by BettyB
To paint a picture that will appear and disappear, Landscape painting on walls of rooms, To paint in figures for carpets or borders, To paint in imitation of mahogany and maple, The art of painting on glass, 9:54 Read by BettyB
Best method of polishing steel, To make letters of blue on polished steel, To preserve the brightness of polished steel, To give steel a temper to cut marble, 6:05 Read by prajak
To wash iron or steel with copper, To give iron the whiteness of silver, To wash iron with tin, 5:15 Read by prajak
To give tin the whiteness and brilliancy of silver, To crystallize tin, To make a gold coloured varnish for tin, 4:30 Read by prajak
To make shellac varnish for japanning, To make the best copal varnish, To make a spirit varnish for maps, To make elastic varnish for umbrellas, To varnish maps and pictures, 6:46 Read by prajak
To make brunswick blacking, To make a print appear on a gold ground, Best method of tracing or copying a picture, The construction and use of a copying machine, To produce the exact likeness of any object instantly, 9:57 Read by prajak
Copper plate engraving, Etching on copper plates, Engraving and scraping in mezzotinto, Etching in aqua-tinta, Copper plate printing, 15:03 Read by prajak
Etching letters and flowers on glass, To print figures with a smooth stone, To cut glass with a piece of iron, 4:38 Read by BettyB
Best cement for joining glass, Best cement for joining china or crockery, To make a strong water proof glue, 3:40 Read by Agnes Robert Behr
The art of moulding figures in relief, To cast images in plaster, 2:48 Read by Romeo J.
To produce embossed letters on marble, To soften stone, 2:14 Read by Romeo J.
To change wood, apparently, to stone, To render wood, cloth or paper, fire proof 2:38 Read by twomustangs
To produce fire readily, To make super-combustible matches, To make gun powder, To make the common fulminating powder, To make mercurial fulminating powder, 6:53 Read by Agnes Robert Behr
To kindle a fire under water, To light a candle by application of ice, To form letters or flowers of real flame, To produce flame of various colours, 4:29 Read by EmilyCripps
To make sky rockets and fire wheels, To produce detonating balloons, To prepare a phial that will give light in the dark, To make a person's face appear luminous in the dark, 6:20 Read by EmilyCripps
To freeze water in warm weather, To change the colours of animals, To give leather a beautiful metallic lustre, 3:52 Read by Stacey Malcolm
An easy method of extracting the essence of roses, To prepare various kinds of essences, To prepare soda water, 4:29 Read by jenno
To produce metallic trees, To tin copper by boiling, A metal that will melt in hot water, 2:18 Read by twomustangs
Illustration of calico printing, To prepare an imitation of gold bronze, 5:00 Read by jenno
To procure the exhilarating gas, Construction of the galvanic pile or battery, Construction of the oxy-hydrogen blow-pipe, To make a dry phosphorescent powder, Curious experiment of precipitation, 7:49 Read by Larry Wilson
To make a beautiful soft glass for jewelry, Composition of various kinds of glass, Composition of various alloys, 5:19 Read by jenno
To produce various kinds of gas, Various chemical tests, To produce a picture instantly, 5:27 Read by twomustangs
A cheap imitation of silver bronze, To make crayons of various colours, To make hard sealing wax, The art of manufacturing paper hangings, To make elastic blacking for leather, Sundry experiments, 12:36 Read by BettyB
Appendix 12:06 Read by Larry Wilson

Reviews

Don't Try This At Home...


(3.5 stars)

...until you've set up your chemistry lab complete with beakers , flasks, proper ventilation, and a small charcoal forge. Most of this book is about changing ink colors, invisible inks, fooling around with black powder, making fireworks at home, phosphorus (eep!), but there are a few art projects that won't blow up the neighborhood or destroy your lungs. Well narrated, but scary.