Leave it as it is IMHO
Looks nice the way it is.
Isn’t that a rather personal question?
I ask my girlfriend this question every single night.
Nah.
Just re-size it.
;-)
If you do, make sure you have your three wishes well planned out beforehand.
My husband has a fairly large collection of Victorian art glass lamps, and he says you should never, never polish them. If you ever decide to sell it you will loose a good portion of it’s value if you do. That’s a natural patina and once you polish it, you’ll not get it back.
A curator at a museum dealing in relevant items might have good cleaning advice or warnings.
Turns out, most genies are Iraqi.
His English wasn't very good and when I wished for world peace, I got a pile of dirt with the explanation "this is piece of world you asked for."
Then, when I wished for the Houston Texans to go to the Super Bowl, he LAUGHED at me!
I didn't know genies were allowed to laugh at us.
I'm sure the Sail brothers knew that the bronze would oxidize and took that into account in their design. In my opinion, it would look foolish in the color of my doorknobs (faux bronze).
Don’t touch it.
Antiques Roadshow’s Magic 8 Ball says “No, leave it alone.”
You should know better than to ask such a question on FR! LOLOLOLOL
With certain antiques, the “patina” of the aged finish is valued. Leave it alone until you talk with someone familiar with this particular type of object.
Only take it to a reputable antique restorer.
Don’t touch it, it’s beautiful.
I think the patina looks nice. Don’t know if old lamps are like old furniture, but the value of old furniture is greatly diminished if someone refinishes the piece, even if the work is well done. I guess the old authentic lacquers and the accumulation of natural metal oxidation is part of what makes an antique a real antique.
Listen carefully:
DO NOT POLISH THE BRASS!!
You will lose a good 40% of the value if you do.
The only cleaning you want to perform on a piece like that is using warm water on the glass to get dust off. That is it, nothing more!
If you care about value NO.
Nooooooooooo!
The lamp is fine as it is. And when you are gone, you do not want your heirs bemoaning your stupidity in diminishing its value by cleaning and polishing it.