Bois Durci Relief
Maker Unknown
Date: circa 1855
Place Made: France
Materials & Techniques: Bois durci (rosewood sawdust, animal blood and water)
Dimensions: 11.4 cm diameter
Accession Number: The Bowes Museum, X.81
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This piece is called a relief. This means that it has raised decoration on its surface. It looks like carved ebony (a very expensive and exotic black wood) but is in fact a moulded imitation.
In 1855 in France, Charles Le Page patented the technique called bois durci. A mixture of rosewood sawdust, animal blood and water is heated and dried and then pressed into moulds. The result is an object that looks like carved ebony but that can be made more cheaply and quickly than by any hand method.
Teachers' Information
Bois durci was designed to reproduce carving at a lower price and greater speed than by any hand method and was introduced into England the same year that it was patented in France. It was used for carvings, medallions and rosettes, and these were applied to cabinets and boxes for added decoration. The rosewood sawdust gave the material a black colour that imitated the more expensive exotic wood called ebony.
This piece is a relief of a male head. It resembles medallions and coins made from metal. Around the outer edge is written 'Giuseppe Garibaldi, Guerra D'Italia 1859'. Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882) was an Italian patriot and soldier who led many of the military campaigns that brought about a unified Italy.
Activities
1. Ask your pupils to think of objects that they may have at home or in your classroom that are made using moulds.
2. Study different materials that can be used to produce a relief in a mould. Which are the cheapest and most effective to use?
3.
Pupils could try making reliefs in other ways; building up clay for example or even papier-mâché. Is the use of a mould the most effective way of producing a relief?