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lapidary

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EntityQ17319698· pop 8· linked from 572 articles

Lapidary () is the practice of shaping stone, minerals, or gemstones into decorative items such as cabochons, engraved gems (including cameos), and faceted designs. A person who practices lapidary techniques of cutting, grinding, and polishing is known as a lapidary or lapidarist. Hardstone carving requires specialized carving techniques.

Wikidata facts

Instance of
craft
Material used
mineral
Image
Thai Gem Cutting.jpg
Show 4 more facts
Commons category
Lapidary
female form of label
glyptička
partially coincident with
art of sculpture
product or material produced
ornament

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~16 min read

Encyclopedic overview

13 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • History
  • Medieval lapidaries
  • Techniques
  • Cutting
  • Faceting
  • Polishing
  • Inlaying
  • Safety
  • Societies and clubs
  • See also
  • References
  • External links

Lapidary () is the practice of shaping stone, minerals, or gemstones into decorative items such as cabochons, engraved gems (including cameos), and faceted designs. A person who practices lapidary techniques of cutting, grinding, and polishing is known as a lapidary or lapidarist. Hardstone carving requires specialized carving techniques.

In modern contexts, a gemcutter is a person who specializes in cutting diamonds, but in older contexts the term refers to artists who produced hardstone carvings; engraved gems such as jade carvings, a branch of miniature sculpture or ornament in gemstone.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “lapidary” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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