How to Clean a Frederic Remington Bronze Sculpture

Bronze sculptures are easily cleaned with water and mild soap.

The Frederic Remington Bronze Company offers decorative bronze sculptures in various sizes and price ranges. All pieces are carefully crafted by artists inspired by Frederic Remington himself, a dedicated sculptor of Old West scenery, people and animals. These statues are often proudly displayed in people's homes and require relatively little care or upkeep. Since the bronze is coated in wax, which acts as a protective shield against outside elements, cleaning the sculptures is easy and--when done correctly--will not damage the bronze.

Things You'll Need

• Cleaning rag
• Mild soap
• Tap water
• Bottled water (optional)
• Old toothbrush
• Bowl

Instructions

1. Pick out a cleaning or dusting rag. Make sure it is washed and soft to the touch. Do not use old, scratchy rags on your high-quality bronze, even though the material is designed to resist damage. Take care choosing your rag; make sure you feel comfortable polishing your sculpture with it.

2. Fill a medium-sized bowl with water and add just a few drops of mild soap. Unscented Ivory soap works well, but make sure not to use anything with a strong scent or color. You want the soap mild and the water high quality. Fill the bowl with bottled water if you typically don't drink the tap water in your area.

3. Take your rag and moisten it with the water and soap mixture. Don't drench the rag; just make sure it's damp enough to loosen the dust and grimy film from the surface of your sculpture. Wipe the entire surface with the rag, making sure to achieve full coverage with your cleaning. To get the hard-to-reach spots and details, you may want to use an old toothbrush. Make sure, however, that it is very soft.

4. Wipe down the sculpture once again with clean water to remove all soap residue. Don't let soap dry on the statue. Once you remove all soap, allow your statue to dry completely, which may take a few hours.

References

• F & R Bronze Company: Frederic Remington Museum Quality Bronze Sculptures
• Care and Cleaning of Indoor Bronze Statues and Sculptures