Why does silver turn black?

[diggummup]

I should say why did a stirling silver bracelet that I found over a year ago and had cleaned and polished turn black,just from sitting in a jewelry box? None of the other silver in there did.

[jeff of pa]

Did you clean it all the same way ?

could it be what you used.

[diggummup]

Actually none of the other stuff has ever been cleaned.But none of it is near as tarnished and not black.I had the bracelet cleaned at a jeweler maybe a year or so ago.Your thinking it was something they may have cleaned it with? I know it'll oxodize to a certain degree over time but this things almost black,like a coin I once found in the water.

[Gypsy Heart]

The more sulpher in the air ,dirt or surroundings the blacker silver tarnishes. Take activated charcoal and place bits where you store your silver.

[Jeffro]

It was probably the solution the guy used to clean it, since the other silver didn't turn black. Once you get it rubbed out and polished up, use Gypsy's trick.

[cptbil]

diggummup:
It is a natural process!
I am sure that you are awear of: ferrous oxide (rust!)?
Well!
What you have is an example of silver oxide
A combination of metal and oxygen = oxide!
The cleaned items should be coated with a protective coating/covering right after the cleaning or they'll "rust" (oxide) again!
SO!
Your silver item just "rusted" due to exposure to the air/humidity!
Why didn't the other silver items in the box "rust" ?
They probably have had a protective, transparent, coating applied to them...

[diggummup]

Thanks for the replies.I'll try your little trick Gypsy once I have it cleaned,properly this time.This is still my best find to this day and I was gonna post a pic in best finds but I think i'll get it cleaned first.
Cptbill-thanks for the info.How's your latest expedition going? Any good stories to tell yet?

[PBK]

As already stated, sulphur is usually the culprit, along with dampness. One of the most commonly overlooked sources of sulfur contamination is paper.

Once you get the silver clean— and be sure to finish with a clean cotton cloth, so that there are no contaminants from your hands— drop it into a mylar bag and seal it. A hobby or photo shop that stocks archival supplies should have them in various sizes, along with other chemically inert bags, envelopes, and containers. As long as silver is exposed to air, the tarnish will eventually return.

It's also important to remember that silver is photoreactive and will tarnish from prolonged exposure to bright light— for example, a silver vase in a window.

[Peg Leg]

The finer the silver the more it will oxide.
Peg Leg

[rodgar]

Carefull with the bleach...if you wash the silver with tap water and the water have bleach the silver will turn black, if you want to turn a silver piece black just put bleach on it.

Regards

[DennisB]

Well with all of this intelligence in here I don' want to make an ass of myself but you said STERLING Silver? I haven't seen sterling turn black which leads me to believe that the piece you have is silver. I could be wrong tho. I am sure I will be corrected.

Dennis

[fiatboy]

One of the most commonly overlooked sources of sulfur contamination is paper.

Oh so true. Working in a coin shop, everyday I see people bring in old Morgan and Peace dollars that have been sitting in old paper envelopes for decades---forgotten and stashed away in safe deposit boxes and basements and workshops. They're either black and brown or insanely shiny---which tells me they were just cleaned. Sulphur is the culprit almost every time.

[fiatboy]

For some reason, I don't mind too much when Silver American Eagles tone and tarnish.