A Manual of Wood Carving

by Charles Godfrey Leland; John J. Holtzapffel

Carving concave or convex surfaces, such as the exterior of a horn or the interior of a bowl, is often very difficult work, and though an ingenious artist will readily find out for himself some way to get over such difficulties, it is well to know at once how the work may be done.

Horns. The first difficulty is to fix the object so as to cut it. A beginner who undertakes to carve such a very hard, slippery, and unmanageable object as a horn, will, if he hold it with one hand while he carves with the other, inevitably damage his pattern or wound himself. It is very dangerous to hold the work in one hand or between the knees. One way to secure such an object is to take a board, nail cross-pieces on it over the ends of the horn so that a portion may be exposed on which to work, and in this manner one can cut with safety. Again, holdfasts and clamps may be employed, but the utmost care should be taken lest these slip away whenever too great pressure is brought to bear on them. A very good means to keep the horn firm is to have a piece of wood fast to the table in which there is a hole, into which the lesser end of the horn fits, while the butt rests, and is fixed, on the table. Having secured it, outline the pattern with a V tool or very small graining-gouge, and then cut away the ground with quarter-flat, and finally with flat gouges. The bent file may be freely used for a horn, and it will be necessary in many places. When bosted, finish with careful touching or fine files and glass-paper.

If you wish to colour the horn, select one which is chiefly white. Take a solution of nitrate of silver, which any chemist will prepare for you. Be very careful indeed how you handle it, for it will burn clothes, carpets, or flesh, and at least stain your fingers for a long time. With a glass brush, if you can get one, if not, with a glass point, or pen, or agate point, or wax, apply the acid carefully to the pattern. If you use wood for this purpose it will answer, but it is very speedily consumed by the acid. This will make a yellow, or brown, or sometimes a black stain, according to the strength of the solution, the number of times it is applied, and the hardness of the horn. When the horn is covered with diaper-work, or a great many small figures, or a close pattern, then always put the acid into the hollows, and leave the design in white. A black dye for horn, as well as for metal, is made by combining ammonia with sulphur. It is very malodorous, but is effective. Any chemist will make it, and will also prepare for you the dyes used for ivory and horn. It is better and cheaper for the amateur to buy these than to attempt to make them for himself. In most cases black and brown are the best colours to use.

If a horn is boiled in hot water, or steamed, it will become so soft that it may be flattened. Then it is very easy to carve. The author has in his possession two very ancient and singularly ornamented Italian horns which were thus shaped. Horn, when treated with quick-lime and hot water, can be reduced to a paste which can be made into any shape like a cement or plaster. It becomes hard again in cold water. All old horns were not used for gunpowder; many of them were for wine or other liquors; others were used for blowing; they all make effective ornaments. Carved horns are handsome ornaments when hung up with cord and tassels. I have made them very attractive by gilding the raised patterns on them.

To carve a Bowl. The exterior of a bowl presents no special difficulty, if it be well clamped down. It may be secured with blocks and nails, or screws. But the interior is harder to get at and much harder to cut. This is, of course, chiefly done with bent gouges and chisels. It requires care and patience in cases of special trouble. I have, however, easily succeeded in wearing or wasting away the ground by the process which will be described in carving cocoa-nuts. Wooden bowls, which are well adapted to carving, may be bought cheaply at household furnishing shops. They are of the kind used in every kitchen. They may be mounted on bases, such as any turner can make, to which the bowl should be fastened with a screw and glue. Bowls may be coloured or gilded like horns. They are very useful for many purposes, chiefly to contain visitors’ cards or other small objects on the writing, work, or toilet table.

Cocoa-nuts. If it is to be used as a cup, begin by sawing away the end on which is the “monkey face,” or so much as is desirable. Sometimes the whole nut is left, to be hung up as an amulet, ornament, or charm, as ostrich eggs are hung up in the East. Then clean it smooth with a large rasp till fit to carve. Draw the pattern on this with Chinese white, that there may be no mistakes. Then fix the nut to the board or table, as with the bowl (vide p. [100]).

The ground may, with patience, be cut away with flat gouges, and, with practice, this becomes really easy, and more expeditious than one would at first suppose. Or it may be done chiefly with files. But the most rapid manner of working is by a “cut” which is described as follows by Gen. Seaton, who, however, limits it to mere decoration for a ground.

“There is a species of ornament most useful for the bend of branches, and which is to be seen in Swiss carved brackets. This may be called the zigzag pattern or ornament. It is intended to represent the cross-fissures and marks that are seen in the bark of some trees at the end of the branches. It is done with a flat or quarter-round gouge, the hand swaying from side to side, and at the same time advancing by alternate steps each corner of the tool.”