Polish

The right product, used sparingly, at the right moment.

Goddard's has been making silver care products since Joseph Goddard developed his first formulas in Leicester in 1839, and they remain the standard for household silver care. What matters more than the product, though, is knowing when to reach for it and when to leave a piece alone. Most of the damage done to antique silver happens through well intentioned over cleaning rather than neglect. The guidance below covers how to choose between a cloth, a foam and a liquid polish, how to use each without harming a piece, and the situations where the correct answer is to do nothing at all. Explore the range below.

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Care Guide

Choosing the Right Product

The decision comes down to how tarnished a piece is and whether it can safely be wet. A treated polishing cloth is the right choice for light tarnish and for routine maintenance, and it is the only option for anything that should not be rinsed. Because the cloth is impregnated with cleaning and anti tarnish agents rather than an abrasive paste, it removes less metal than a liquid or paste polish, which makes it the safest thing to use regularly on hallmarked pieces, on jewellery and on anything with fine engraved or chased detail. It also suits gold and lightly tarnished silver plate.

A foam or liquid polish is the better choice where tarnish has built up over years and a cloth alone will not shift it. These work faster and more thoroughly, which is precisely why they should be used less often. Both are appropriate for solid sterling and silver plate in sound condition, and both are used with a soft cloth or the supplied applicator rather than any kind of scouring pad. A foam applied and rinsed suits solid, robust forms such as flatware and plain hollowware, while a liquid worked on and buffed off without rinsing is the safer choice for anything where you would rather not introduce running water at all.

Using It Well

Work in good light on a padded, stable surface, and remove rings before you start. Apply the product to the cloth rather than to the piece, and work in straight, gentle strokes rather than circles, which is easier on the surface and produces a more even result. Change to a clean section of cloth as it darkens, since a loaded cloth simply moves tarnish around. Rinse only where the product calls for it and only where the piece can take it, then dry immediately and completely with a soft, dry cloth, working into every crevice. Water left in a join, a hollow handle or a foot rim is a far bigger problem than the tarnish you started with, and pieces with hollow handles, loaded or weighted bases, applied feet, wooden or bone components, or any enamel should never be immersed or rinsed under a tap.

Two habits protect a piece more than any product. Stay off the hallmarks, working around the marked area rather than over it, because repeated polishing wears marks away and the marks are a substantial part of what identifies and dates a piece. And leave the darkening in the recesses of chased, engraved and embossed decoration, since that contrast is what gives the design its depth. A piece polished uniformly bright in every crevice looks newer and reads as less considered, not better cared for.

When Not to Polish

Silver polish belongs on silver and silver plate, and nowhere else. Never use it on bronze, where the patina is most of what makes the object valuable and cannot be restored once stripped. Keep it away from gilded surfaces and from silver gilt, where the gold layer is thin and will be removed. Avoid it on enamel, on closed back jewellery settings, on foiled stones, and on porous or soft stones such as opal, turquoise, pearl, coral and emerald. Silver plate that is already worn through to the base metal at rims, feet and high points will not improve with polishing, and further work only removes what plating remains.

Frequency matters as much as method. Silver that is used regularly and washed by hand promptly after use tarnishes far more slowly than silver that sits on display, and proper storage in tarnish inhibiting cloth or acid free tissue does more good than any amount of polishing. Where a piece is heavily tarnished, structurally damaged, previously repaired, or of significant value, the sensible step is to ask before you begin rather than after. Our team is available to advise on the right approach for a specific piece.

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Which product should I choose?

For light tarnish and regular upkeep, choose a polishing cloth. It removes the least metal and is safe to use often, including on jewellery, on hallmarked pieces and on anything that cannot be rinsed. For tarnish that has accumulated over years on solid sterling or sound silver plate, a foam or liquid polish will do the work a cloth cannot, and should then be followed by cloth maintenance so that the heavier product is needed only rarely.
Will polishing reduce the value of my antique silver?

Polishing correctly and occasionally will not. Polishing frequently, aggressively or indiscriminately will. Every polish removes a small amount of metal, and over decades that shows as softened engraving, thinned high points and, most seriously, worn or illegible hallmarks. The two rules that protect value are to work around the marks rather than over them, and to leave the natural darkening in the recesses of decoration rather than trying to bring the whole surface to a uniform shine.
Can I use these products on silver plate?

Yes, provided the plating is intact. Silver plate is a thin layer of silver over a base metal, and it wears first at rims, feet, handles and raised decoration. If a warmer or greyer colour is already showing through in those areas, the plating there has gone and polishing will not bring it back. On sound plate, use a cloth in preference to a foam or liquid, and polish less often than you would solid silver.
Can I use silver polish on my jewellery?

A treated cloth is suitable for plain gold and silver jewellery and for lightly tarnished chain and settings. It should not be used on enamel, on closed back or foiled settings, or around porous and soft stones including opal, turquoise, pearl, coral and emerald, all of which are damaged by chemical contact. Avoid liquid and foam polishes on jewellery entirely, since the product works into settings and cannot be fully removed. Anything beyond light surface care on a set piece should go to a jeweller experienced with period work.
Can I use these on bronze, pewter or gilded pieces?

No. Silver polish should not be used on bronze under any circumstances, as it strips the patina permanently and takes most of the object's value with it. Bronze needs dusting with a soft brush and nothing more. Gilded and silver gilt surfaces carry a very thin layer of gold that polish will remove, so those pieces should be dusted rather than polished. Pewter, copper and brass each require products formulated for them.
How often should I polish?

As seldom as the piece allows. Silver in regular use, washed by hand in warm water with a mild detergent and dried immediately, needs very little else. Display pieces benefit more from correct storage, wrapped in tarnish inhibiting cloth or acid free tissue and kept away from rubber bands, newspaper and sealed plastic, than from a polishing routine. For most collections, a light pass with a cloth once or twice a year is sufficient, with a heavier product reserved for the occasional piece that genuinely needs it.
What if a piece is very tarnished or has been repaired?

Ask before you start. Heavy black tarnish, previous repairs, replating, unstable enamel and pieces of significant value all warrant a conversation first, because the wrong approach at home can make specialist work harder and more expensive later. Our team is available to talk through the right approach for an individual piece, and to point you to a silversmith or conservator where the work is beyond routine care.
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