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Carving bone, antler, shell and tagua

· 1 min read · Techniques

Illustration: Carving bone, antler, shell and tagua

Hard organic materials are carved with saws, files, burs and gravers. They give light pieces with a great variety of looks.

Steps of the technique: Choose the material, Draw, Cut, Carve, Engrave, Polish
Summary of the steps

Materials #

Bone, antler, shell, tagua, mother-of-pearl and jet. See bone and ivory and horn and antler.

Techniques #

Openwork, relief, line engraving, cameos and scrimshaw (ink engraving on bone or similar material).

Finish #

It is sanded and polished; dyed with natural dyes or oiled.

Ethics and legality #

Avoid elephant ivory and tortoiseshell, and check the origin of antler, shell and coral.

Step by step #

  1. Choose the material. Bone, antler, shell or tagua.
  2. Draw. Mark the design.
  3. Cut. With a fine saw.
  4. Carve. With files and burs.
  5. Engrave. With a graver or scrimshaw.
  6. Polish. And protect with oil or wax.

Tools and materials #

  • Saw, files and burs
  • Gravers
  • Scrimshaw ink
  • Dust mask

Common mistakes #

  • Heating the material when milling: it burns.
  • Cutting against the grain.
  • Using protected materials.
  • Breathing dust without a mask.

See also #

This entry was drafted with the help of AI and is pending review by the author.