Howard Shattuck

Have you ever marveled at prized museum exhibits of ancient sculpture depicting long-lost cultural and religious traditions? Or perhaps you’ve been awed by the creative genius demonstrated by metal jewelry dating back to 2000 B.C., so intricate and unique, it seemed more appropriately named “art” than decorative adornment. Noting the antiquity of such marvelous pieces is humbling and compels us to ask, “How in the world did they accomplish such complex artistry so long ago?”

In our wonderment, we are not alone. Metal working has always been regarded as one of the decorative arts’ highest achievements. We find it expressed in gold, in uncovered tombs dating back to the Minoan, Phoenician and Egyptian civilizations, as well as in other relics discovered across the continents, including ancient ceremonial imagery, religious deities, and reflections of nature and the human form.

For more than 6,000 years, metals like bronze, silver and brass have been transformed into expressions that tell the stories of long-silenced ages. Today, with great reverence, Maitland-Smith artisans continue the rich tradition of metal working and the processes by which it is created, known as lost wax casting and repoussé.

The Lost Wax Casting Process
The exact origins of the lost wax process are unknown, but the ever-present and evolving forms of wax throughout the ages have allowed anything that can be modeled in the material to be faithfully translated into metal.

This intricate process entails making a model in hand carved wax and then surrounding it with a fine grained concrete-like material, which hardens and becomes a mold. Before the mold hardens, entry and exit holes are made to facilitate the course. When the mold is heated, the wax object melts and exits the mold.

In essence, the wax object is “lost”—giving this process its name—and what remains is a negative of the lost wax object. When the mold is filled with molten metal, the result is an exact copy of the wax original. At last, the mold is then broken freeing the cast metal copy.

The Repoussé Technique
Another ancient technique and “cousin” to the lost wax process is the hammered traditional technique called repoussé.

Favored by silversmiths and artisans who patiently transform flat sheets of metal by raising the design from the back, repoussé requires great skill and patience. In the hands of a master artisan, a flat metal sheet can be methodically and creatively hammered into a bowl, pitcher or other exquisite decorative accessory.