While I am trying to keep a stiff upper lip in my basement shop by working on a British naval officer’s campaign chest, the rest of the house is in a European near-riot.
This morning the postman dropped off another proof of “To Make as Perfectly as Possible: Roubo on Marquetry,” which I’m going to start plowing into as soon as I stop typing this missive to you.
A few minutes later, the same postman stopped by to make me sign for a package from France. What’s this? He shrugs his shoulders and ambles away. I rip the package open with a knife and suddenly remember I had won this item via French eBay.
It’s a brass apron hook that looks like a workbench that is adorned with a bowsaw, holdfast, mallet and handplane. The bauble is surprisingly small – the brass part is only 1-1/2” long – and quite detailed – I can see the pegs that secure the tenons on the front leg.
Now all I need is an apron that works with these hooks. That shouldn’t be too hard to rig.
Also in the Inbox is a very interesting e-mail from Jeff Burks with an early – 1502 – depiction of a shoulder knife in use.
“As far as I know this is the oldest image depicting a shoulder knife in use, “Jeff writes. “The original was an intarsia self portrait made by Antonio Barili in 1502. I believe this was installed at the chapel of Saint John the Baptist in the Duomo of Siena.
“Antonio Barili (1453-1516) was an Italian intarsia designer, civil engineer, architect and engraver and a native of Siena. From 1483 to 1502 he worked in Siena Cathedral, providing carving and intarsia. This particular intarsia work was destroyed during World War II.
“The Latin inscription on the intarsia reads: ‘Hoc opus ego Antonius Barilis coelo non penicello D excussi an MCCCCCII.’ This translates to: ‘This work have I Antonio Barili made with the carving knife, not with a brush. In the year 1502.’ ”
One interesting description of this self-portrait comments that Barilis seems to be guiding the knife with a pencil in his right hand. Curious.
— Christopher Schwarz
Is he guiding the shoulder knife with a pencil or is he filling the incisions with pencil lead or ink from a quill?
I like the hat! I have to get me one:)
There’s one fewer C (hundred) in the engraving. Makes it 1402.
The description of the images should read:
1. 1927 Halftone photo print
2. Unknown tinted black & white photo
3. woodcut copy by an unknown artist
The original 1502 intarsia was “made with pear, beech, walnut, maple and palisander woods.” Obviously the guy who copied the original made an error in the text. Since the original was destroyed during the war it is unlikely that a full color photo exists.
alright cool, so when will these shoulder knives be available ? haha, but really I gotta try one out
Pfeil makes one not sure if you could find it at would craft or anywhere else in the U.S. though.
also Is that a small folding pocket knife in front of the board ? are they really that old ?
I give up. What is a shoulder knife?
Yes it is a folding pocket knife, which have been excavated in pre-Roman archaeological digs in Spain. So they are far older than 1502, but they didn’t become common pocket items for everyman until the 18th century.
I took some photos of the shoulder knives that Don Williams had on display at the Roubo event at WIA last year. They may appear misleading because the sharp blades were covered with blue tape. This tool was illustrated by Roubo in plate 293 of L’art du menuisier ébéniste.
http://www.carpentryarchive.org/images/wia/wia2012_1513.html
Hey I just found out that Pfeil makes some http://www.classichandtools.com/acatalog/Shoulder-Knives.html
I don’t think he is guiding the knife with the pencil, but rather drawing what he will be carving next.
I do not think he is guiding the knife with the pencil, but rather drawing what he will be carving nect.
Could we please see a preliminary sketch of the naval officers chest?
I have just completed a Merchant marine officers chest with canted sides and secret compartments.
But I didn’t make it full size since I had to take it home on an airplane.
A little side note: there is a mistake in the text because the translation of carve is caelo and not coelo.
The pointer is more likely a stylus (the stylus, a thin metal stick used for scratching in papyrus or wax tablets) as the graphite pencil wasn’t invented until much later in the sixteenth century.
Wesley
Looks like a chin knife, not a shoulder knife.
Also, there goes the market on French Apron Hooks… Chris, next time you get ready to write about something, can you send me a note so I can start buying stock?
Could you please give me the name of the company you mentioned several months ago that sell shop aprons? Thanks, Mark Modic
On Mon, Apr 8, 2013 at 7:16 PM, Lost Art Press
Top right of page is a search box. The third hit on the keyword ‘apron’ gives a post on artifact aprons. Happy shopping.
I want to know the parrot’s story. How long does it take for an unladen parrot to fly from the tropics to Italy?
Is that an Engish or African parrot?
Norwegian Blue.