Hardstone carving, inart history andarchaeology, is the artistic carving ofsemi-precious stones (and sometimesgemstones), such asjade, rock crystal (clearquartz),agate,onyx,jasper,serpentinite, orcarnelian, and for objects made in this way.[1][2] Normally the objects are small, and the category overlaps with bothjewellery andsculpture. Hardstone carving is sometimes referred to by the Italian termpietre dure;[3] however,pietra dura (with an "a") is the common term used for stone inlay work, which causes some confusion.[4]
From theNeolithic period until about the 19th century such objects were among the most highly prized in a wide variety of cultures, often attributed special powers or religious significance, but today coverage in non-specialist art history tends to be relegated to a catch-alldecorative arts or "minor arts" category. The types of objects carved have included those with ritual or religious purposes,engraved gems assignet rings and other kinds ofseal, handles,belt hooks and similar items, vessels and purely decorative objects.
Hardstone carving falls under the general category ofglyptic art, which covers small carvings andsculpture in all categories of stone. The definition in this context of "hardstone" is unscientific and not very rigid, but excludes "soft" stones such assoapstone (steatite) andminerals such asalabaster, both widely used for carving, as well as typical stones for building andmonumental sculpture, such asmarble and other types oflimestone, andsandstone. These are typically not capable of a fine finish in very small carvings, and would wear in prolonged use. In other contexts, such as architecture, "hard stone" and "soft stone" have different meanings, referring to actual measured hardness using theMohs scale of mineral hardness and other measures. Some rocks used in architecture and monumental sculpture, such asgranite, are at least as hard as the gemstones, and others such asmalachite are relatively soft but counted as hardstones because of their rarity and fine colour.
Essentially, any stone that is often used in jewellery is likely to count as a hardstone. Hard organic minerals such asamber andjet are included, as well as themineraloidobsidian. Hardstones normally have to be drilled rather than worked with edged tools to achieve a fine finish.Geologically speaking, most of the gemstones traditionally carved in the West are varieties ofquartz, including:chalcedony,agate,amethyst,sard,onyx,carnelian,heliotrope,jasper, and quartz in its uncoloured and transparent form, known as rock crystal. The various materials called jade have been dominant in East Asian andMesoamerican carving. Stones typically used for buildings and large sculpture are not often used for small objects such as vessels, although this does occur. For example, in theUruk period ofSumerian culture (4th millennium BCE) heavy vases, cups andewers ofsandstone andlimestone have been found,[5] but were not for common use, as the people ofUruk had well-developedpottery.[6]
The art is very ancient, going back to theIndus Valley civilization and beyond, and major traditions includecylinder seals and other small carvings in the AncientNear East, which were also made in softer stones. Inlays of semi-precious stones were often used for decoration or highlights in sculptures of other materials, for example statues often had eyes inlaid with white shell and bluelapis lazuli or another stone.[7]
Chinese jade carving begins with the carving of ritual objects, including blades forji anddagger-axes clearly never intended for use, and the "Six Ritual Jades" including thebi andcong, which according to much later literature represented heaven and earth respectively.[8] These are found from theNeolithicLiangzhu culture (3400-2250 BCE) onwards, and blades from the 2nd millennium BCEShang dynasty on.[9] Traditional Chinese culture attaches strong powers to jade; thejade burial suits in which aristocrats of theHan dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE) were buried were intended to preserve the body from decay.[10]
The Chinese and other cultures often attributed specific properties for detecting and neutralizingpoison to gemstones, a belief still alive in the EuropeanRenaissance, as shown by the works ofGeorgius Agricola, the "father ofmineralogy".[11] The English word "jade" derives (via the Spanishpiedra de ijada) from theAztec belief that the mineral cured ailments of thekidneys and sides.[12] The Han period also saw the beginning of the tradition of fine decorative jade carving which has lasted until modern times, though the fine carving of other hardstones did not develop until the 17th century, and then appears to have been produced in different workshops and styles from those for jade.[13] In general whiteishnephrite jade was the most highly regarded in China until about 1800, when the deeper and brighter green of the bestjadeite became more highly favoured. There are related Asian traditions ofKorean jade carving, inSoutheast Asia and, to a much lesser extent,Japan.
SmallishSassanian carvings are known, mostly for seals or jewellery; the central medallion of the "Cup ofChosroes" (gallery) is one of the largest.Egyptian carving of rock crystal into vessels appears in the late 10th century, and virtually disappears after about 1040. In 1062 theCairo palace of theFatimid Caliphate was looted by his mercenaries, and the examples found in European treasuries, like the one illustrated, may have been acquired as the booty was dispersed. The rock crystal used in Egypt was apparently traded fromEast Africa.[14]
Until recently it was thought that jade carving was introduced to the central Asian Islamic world in theTimurid period, but it is becoming clearer that archers'thumb rings, knife hilts, and various other objects had been carved for centuries, even millennia before, though in limited numbers.[15] Islamic jades and other carvings reached a particular peak in theMughal Empire, where apart from portable carvings inlaidpanels of carved stones were included in buildings such as theTaj Mahal.[16] The great wealth of the Mughal court allowedprecious stones likerubies andemeralds to be inset freely in objects. The court workshops of theOttoman Empire also produced lavish and elaborate objects, in similar styles but without reaching the artistic peaks of Mughal carving.[17]
From the early civilizations of the near East descended the carving of vessels and small statues inAncient Greece,Ancient Rome and subsequentWestern art, and alsoSassanianPersia; however it is not very significant in theart of ancient Egypt, outside jewellery, asalabaster was a more common material. The jade signet ring ofTutankhamun has been called a "unique specimen" of Egyptian jade.[18]Among the seals of theMinoan civilization during theAegean Bronze Age, thePylos Combat Agate dated circa 1450 BC is considered one of the finest works of that era, depicting naturalistic details of the human body comparable to works of the much laterClassical period.[19]
Hardstone carving more often refers to vessels and figures than smallerengraved gems forseal rings or made asobjéts d'art, which were the main artistic expression of hardstone carving in the GreekClassical andHellenistic periods, and are regarded separately. From theHellenistic period elaborate vessels in semi-precious stone begin to appear, mostly carved, some in cameo. TheCup of the Ptolemies andFarnese Cup both appear to have been made inAlexandria inPtolemaic Egypt, as does a simpler flutedsardonyx cup in Washington which, like the Cup of the Ptolemies, was adapted to be a Christianchalice, and given elaborate gold and jewelled mounts byAbbot Suger for hisAbbey of St Denis about 1140.[20] The elaborately carvedRubens Vase, now inBaltimore, is thought to date from the 4th century.[21]
From the Late Antique plainer shapes for vessels appear, concentrating on showing the natural patterns of figured stones - survivals of these are hard to date, and mostly have survived in church treasuries with medieval mounts in goldsmith work. The best collection of Byzantine liturgical vessels is in the Treasury ofSan Marco, Venice, some of them booty from theFourth Crusade.[22]Byzantine artists maintained a tradition throughout the Middle Ages, often working in clear rock crystal. There are a few large pieces fromCarolingian art, including theLothair Crystal, and then a continuing tradition of rock crystal work, often used undecorated in reliquaries and other pieces in the same way as modern glass, for which they are often mistaken by modern viewers. By the end of the Middle Ages a wider variety of stones and objects are seen, used for both religious objects and secular ones.
TheOpificio delle pietre dure ("Hardstone workshop") founded by the Medici inFlorence in 1588 soon became the leading workshop in Europe, and developed thepietra dura style of multi-colouredinlays, which use coloured marbles as well as gemstones. They also produced vessels and small sculptures from a single piece of stone, often mounted with gold, which was also a speciality ofMilanese workshops.[23] Other rulers followed their example, includingPeter the Great, whosePeterhof Lapidary Works, founded in 1721, began the passion among Russian royalty and aristocrats for hardstones. Engraved gem production had already revived, centred onVenice but with artists in many countries, and gems of very high quality continued to be produced until the mid-19th century. TheMannerist court taste of the 16th century delighted in extravagant vessels for serving fruit or sweetmeats, or display as table centrepieces or on sideboards, with hardstones augmented with mounts and bases in precious metal,enamel and jewels. One collection that has remained mostly together is the "Dauphin's Treasure" ofLouis, Dauphin of France (1661–1711), which passed to his sonPhilip V of Spain; over 120 objects are now displayed together in theMuseo del Prado, many of which were already over a century old in the Dauphin's lifetime.[24]
In contrast to the vastmalachite vases that rather typify Russian carving (picture below),[25] the last notable modern producer wasFabergé in pre-Revolutionary Russia. Before he produced the famousImperial Easter Eggs he made his reputation with small hardstone figures of animals and people, typically only 25–75mm long or wide, and small vases with a few flowers—the vase and "water" in rock crystal and the flowers in various hardstones and enamel.[26]
_01b.jpg)
Beyond the Old World, hardstone carving was important in variousPre-Columbian cultures, includingjade in Mesoamerica andobsidian in Mesoamerica. Because its colour had associations with water and vegetation, jade was also a symbol of life to many cultures; theMaya placed jade beads in the mouths of the dead. Lackingiron, jade was the hardest material the Pre-Columbians were able to work with, apart fromemery.
A particular type of object running through the long history ofMesoamerican cultures from theOlmec to the Maya andAztec is the face "mask" in semi-precious stone (they do not seem to have been for actually wearing), either carved from a single piece or of pieces inlaid on a backing of another material. Curators refer to "Olmec-style" face masks as despite being Olmec in style, to date no example has been recovered in a controlled archaeological Olmec context. However they have been recovered from sites of other cultures, including one deliberately deposited in the ceremonial precinct ofTenochtitlan (Mexico City), which would presumably have been about 2,000 years old when theAztecs buried it, suggesting these were valued and collected as Roman antiquities were in Europe.[27] The Aztecs' own masks are more typically ofturquoise inlay, the Mayans' of jade inlay (see gallery).
Another supposed type of Pre-Columbian hardstone carving is the rockcrystal skull; however experts are now satisfied that all known large (life-size) examples are 19th-century forgeries, though some miniature ones may be genuinely Pre-Columbian.
TheMāori people ofNew Zealand, developed the carving ofpounamu (jade) for weapons, tools and ornaments to a high standard.[28]
Most hardstones, including jade and quartz varieties, have acrystalline structure that does not allow detailed carving by edged tools without great wastage and a poor finish. Working them has always been very time-consuming, which together with the cost of rare materials often traded from very far away, has accounted for the great expense of these objects. After sawing and perhaps chiselling to reach the approximate shape, stones were mostly cut by using abrasive powder from harder stones in conjunction with a hand-drill, probably often set in alathe, and by grinding-wheels.Emery has been mined for abrasive powder onNaxos since antiquity, and was known in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Some early types of seal were cut by hand, rather than a drill, which does not allow fine detail. There is no evidence that magnifying lenses were used by cutters in antiquity. The Chinese sometimes tipped their straight drills with less-valueddiamonds.[29]
A medieval guide to gem-carving techniques survives fromTheophilus Presbyter. Byzantine cutters used a flat-edged wheel on a drill for intaglio work, while Carolingian ones used round-tipped drills; it is unclear how they learned this technique. Mughal carvers also used drills.[30] Inlay sections could be sawed bybow saws. In intaglio gems at least, the recessed cut surface is usually very well preserved, and microscopic examination is revealing of the technique used.[31] The colour of several gemstones can be enhanced by a number of artificial methods, using heat, sugar and dyes. Many of these can be shown to have been used since antiquity — since the 7th millennium BC in the case of heating.[32]
As a highly prestigious artform using expensive materials, many different techniques for imitating hardstone carvings have been developed, some of which have themselves created significant artistic traditions.Celadon ware, with a jade coloured glaze, was important in China and Korea, and in early periods used for shapes typical of jade objects. Romancameo glass was invented to imitate cameo gems, with the advantage that consistent layers were possible even in objects in the round. The small group of 11th(?)-centuryHedwig glasses are inspired by Fatimid rock-crystal vessels, and from the 18th centurychandeliers incut glass drew from fantastically expensive rock crystal ones made for the court ofLouis XIV. In theItalian Renaissanceagate glass was perfected to imitate agate vessels with multicoloured figuration.[33]
Ceramics have often been decorated to imitate gemstones, and wood, plaster and other materials painted to imitate stones.Scagliola developed in Italy to imitate pietra dura inlays on plaster; less elaborate forms are calledmarbleizing. Medievalilluminated manuscripts often imitated both inlaid stone and engraved gems, and after printing took overpaper marbling continued as a manual craft for decoratingend-papers and covers.
