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Bone carving

arts Maturity 11-13 Next article →

Bone carving is the art of making things from animal parts. People use bones, antlers, and horns to create beautiful items. Artists can make tools or special goods this way. They might engrave designs onto the surface. They can also use paint to add color. Some carvers make a whole new object from a single piece. This craft allows people to turn natural items into art.

Roman Bone Carving
Roman Bone Carving

There are many ways to work with this material. Artists often make thin plaques, which are flat pieces of bone. They do this because the inside of a bone is soft. It is hard to make a round sculpture from it. Bone is not as hard as ivory. It also does not have a shiny or lustrous surface. This makes very fine details a hard job for the carver.

Lilleberge Plaque (BM)
Lilleberge Plaque (BM)

This art has been around for a very long time. It was a big part of prehistoric art. For example, people made a piece called the Swimming Reindeer. They used antler to make that famous work. People also made Venus figurines from bone. In July 2021, scientists found something amazing. They found a carving made by Neanderthals. It is about 51,000 years old.

Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum
Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum

Many different cultures have used bone throughout history. In the Middle Ages, people made small boxes called caskets. The Embriachi workshop in North Italy made these before 1425. They used rows of thin, carved plaques to decorate them. The Anglo-Saxon Franks Casket is another famous example. It was made from whalebone to look like ivory. Some workers even used flat bones to test new designs. These are called trial-pieces.

Lilleberge Plaque (BM)
Lilleberge Plaque (BM)

Bone carving connects us to the very first artists. It is a way to use what is nearby. In places without elephants, bone was easier to find than ivory. People also used whalebone or baleen for art. This type of work is often called scrimshaw. Whether it is a tiny face or a large plaque, it shows skill. It shows how humans have always wanted to create.

Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum
Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum
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File:Lilleberge Plaque (BM).JPG
Lilleberge Plaque (BM).JPG
File:Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum.jpg
Alaska Grasendes Karibu c1910 Linden-Museum.jpg
File:Roman Bone Carving.jpg
Roman Bone Carving.jpg
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