From the land of Persia: The process of making this exquisite craft

And so the process starts....

The process of making of this craft is complex and has many stages that the metal has to go through before it reaches its final destination, that means final object.

STAGE 1

The first and the foremost stage is to roll the metal bars into the sheets.

Then they are rolled into different thicknesses which is also called gauging depending on the kind of product being made.

These sheets are then cut into basic shapes using metal cutters.

STAGE 2

Depending on say for example.. for making a bowl, the basic shape is first drawn on spinning machine/ lathe machine, to create an object with symmetry about an axis of rotation using various operation such as

Engraving is putting a design onto a hard flat surface, by carving into it. The result may be a decorative piece in itself, as when silver, gold or steel are engraved.

tools with metal on top
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In these processes, filling the form with lacquer which is melted by heating and then tightly fitted into the form.

In case of flatter objects like plates and trays, the piece is set on the bed of lacquer.

metal engraving on a lacquer bed
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The designs are drawn on piece with hand these using hammer and chisel, the craftsmen or reinforces the impression on the design on the piece.

Image result for metal cutting tools ancient

tools
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drilling
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The lac is filled inside the form acts as a cushion against the blows of the hammer as cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling or deformation, facing and turning.

cutting metal
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For example complex organic shapes, almost everything is done by hand.

Here in these cases, the metal is drawn into the basic shapes using chisels and hammers.

The head of the chisel may vary for doing the work required like, heads for screwdrivers, heads of thick needle, thick and rounded off.

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different types of chisels
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STAGE 3

Once the products are drawn into their desired forms the surfaces are decorated using a mix in which two techniques are used one is chasing and engraving.

chasing and engraving
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Chasing- the process of creating textures, ornamentation, designs and decorations, using a chisel and a hammer.

once the hand drawn design has been reinforced using the chisels and the hammer, the lac from inside the form is heated using a torch and the molten lac is then removed from the form.