Aladdin's cave

We bought a couple of brass trays at the Old City last night, one oval-shaped and one circular. I loved the shop - the owner had all sorts of brass/metal trinkets and small pieces of wooden furniture. Every little inch of space was covered in knick-knacks.

The brass tray were sold "kaamil" - complete with a good clean and polish, which was supposed to take 10 minutes but ended up taking 2 hours!

But the pieces looked terrific and the young boys really put their backs into it.

Brass trays in the Old City are mostly from India. Usually priced by weight and intricacy of the design. Between USD 40 and USD 100. Some may have been in stock for a while and look very old but with a good clean, they can look brand new. Some have brass legs that can be screwed on, for low-lying tables, but these are heavier and so pricier.

The cleaning process: soap solution and a brush, then rinsed and dried. Coated with brass polish and rubbed vigorously by hand. Then tray is covered with sawdust and rubbed by hand; this repeated several times. Finally, a final buff with a soft cloth.

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