Improvements in the Production of Sculptured, Artistic, or other Effects in Marble or other suitable material.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 12th July, 1892-Accepted, 13th Aug., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Production of Sculptured, Artistic, or other
Effects in Marble or other suitable material.
I FREDERICK AUGUSTUS SHAW of 409 Marlborough Street, Boston, in the
State of Massachusetts, United States of America, Artist do hereby declare the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
Artists have for centuries striven for beautiful effects of light and shade in
ecclesiastical and architectural decoration, and for this work, glass and vitreous
compounds have been largely used, the glass being of different colours, and in
figure-work paint has supplemented the glass for light and shade effects and facial
expression.
In my researches to produce new and beautiful art decoration and secure effects
not heretofore obtainable by the use of substances, such as heretofore used, I have
discovered that the natural stone, of the lime-stone variety, such for instance as
white marble, alabaster, and gypsum, they having the quality of translucency, inay
be utilised most effectually for the production of translucent figures and designs.
In accordance with my invention I take a slab of natural stone of the class
included by the term limestone and having the quality of translucency, and I
work or chisel the figure or design in the stone, varying the depth of cutting and
hence the thickness of the stone at predetermined points in order to obtain varying
degrees of translucency whereby light and shade effects are produced, the thinner
portions showing high light, the thicker portions producing the dark or shadow
effects.
Figure 1, in elevation represents part of a figure for a cathedral window; and
Figure 2 a section thereof.
In the drawing, a represents a slab of marble, it being the substance which 1
have so far found to be the best material for the most desirable and beautiful
effects, durability of work being considered.
This natural rock substance, marble of substantially uniform texture, is worked
or subjected where the figure or design is to show, to the action of a chisel or
other rock-cutting tool, and preferably the surface is worked in intaglio from
one toward its other side until parts of the marble or stated equivalent material
are thinned to translucency, the extent of the surface of the slab thus made
translucent, varying in thickness, and consequently in degree of translucency
according as it is desired to produce high light, or shadow or dark effects.
I distinctly disclaim the employment of any plaster or vitreous material or any
plastic mouldable compound, and base my invention solely on the employment of
natural rock substances having the quality of translucency within certain thicknesses
and capable of exhibiting greater or less translucency according to gradation of
thickness.
In the drawing, and especially in Fig. 2, the varying thicknesses of the marble
is designated, the thinner places being more translucent.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what.
I claim is:
1. As an article of manufacture, a slab of natural rock or marble of the lime-
stone variety having the quality of translucency, as described, and having a design
sculptured or worked thereon, the variations or gradations of light and shade being
secured by differing thicknesses of the stone at predetermined points and the whole
design developed by transmitted light, substantially as described.

page_text: 2. The herein described method of producing translucent art figures from marble
or equivalent natural stone, which consists in taking a marble or equivalent slab
having the quality of translucency within certain degrees of thickness, then working
the desired surface in varying degrees of depth whereby the variations or gradations
of light and shade are secured and developed by transmitted light, substantially 5
as described.
2 T
WM. BROOKES & SON,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicant.