Sulfur for niello

I’ve been wanting to give niello a try for a while. I’ve got all the
raw material except the sulfur. The only sulfur I’ve found so far
locally is the stuff they sell for lowering the ph of a garden. It
is 90+% sulfur. The problem is I don’t know what the rest is. I’m
guessing clay.

Any suggestions on where to get the sulfur? The lab supply places
I’ve looked at seem expensive, and sell only in small quantities.

Also, if anyone has made their own, can you give any suggestions?

Thanks!
Jeff

I wouldn’t worry about the garden purity rating… At one time most
of the sulfur in the US at least was recovered from underground
natural deposits near the Texas Lousiana border . Steam was injected
through wells - the sulfur melted and forced out through another
well into a “pond” where it hardened. Today most sulfur is
recovered in hydrocarbon refining or from natural gas purification.

Even if you buy reagent grade you are not necessarily getting a
better material-- but you will be paying for an analysis and fancier
packaging with more markups.

Traditional nielo would have been made with natural sulfur at best.
In reality it would probably have been made from natural lead and
silver sulfide ores.

jesse

Try the pharmacy, the medicinal stuff is pure. I think it’s labeled
“flowers of sulfur”. I got some awhile back for another purpose.

Ron Charlotte – Gainesville, FL
@Ron_Charlotte1 OR afn03234@afn.org

Jeff, another possible source would be sublimed sulfur (I believe
it’s 100% sulfur) from a pharmacists shop. I bought line from a
local drugstore. Small quantities and I have no idea how the prices
compare but it is another source.

Mike