WWF - Replica Bone Strap-End Progress and Final

 I tried drawing the interlace pattern directly onto the bone but had a hard time getting it to look anything like the original. In the end I traced the original onto the bone using a light graphite transfer paper and a print out of the original from the book.

Here I have done the very basic etching using the tip of my knife to scratch along the drawn lines. I had to etch all the lines at once as the graphite rubbed off the bone very easily.

It is kind of hard to see in this photo but the indented area on the back of the strap has been started. I used my knife to etch a straight line and then a file to actually start removing bone material. I had a hard time keeping the file straight. I clamped a metal ruler along the line and used that as a file stop (used similarly as a plane stop for wood), which allowed me to make the first few passes straight along the line. Once the first few passes were made the lip of the bone served as a file stop.

The deeper carving has begun. I am using a Ramelson Wood Carving Palm chisel to do the deeper cuts and shaping on the carving.

My homemade chisel was not staying sharp long enough to really do the detail work. I will be trying to make another set of tools this summer using tool grade steel rather than the softer steel used for the first run tools.

As I carve the details deeper, I am also going over the frame line more and more to make it deeper than it was before.

 More detail carving done. I originally estimated I would need 60 hours to complete the entire reproduction. At this point I was very near that time limit already.

 The front is finished. At this point I had spent nearly 80 hrs on the replica. That included cutting the bone stock, shaping the strap-end, and doing the carving on the front.

 The back is started. Like the front, I had to trace the lines onto the bone and give them a rough etching with my knife blade to keep from rubbing them off.

The inside of the bone seemed a bit softer than the front. The etching was much easier to complete and the deeper lines, especially the straight lines went much faster.

The interior details have begun. I still can not decide if they are fruit, birds, or human faces.

The red stain is actually my own blood. There is a saying among wood carving that it isn't done until you have bled on it. Well, I bled a lot. While making one of the cross cuts the chisel slipped out of the groove and right across my thumb. I wiped away the blood and found that it had filled the grooves in the bone. After I took the photo I had to take a toothbrush to the groves to remove the rest of it.

 The carving on the back is finished.

 Here is the back of the finished strap-end all cleaned up and polished. You can see the glossy look as I hold it tilted slightly to the light. I used fine wood ash, water, and a piece of wool fabric to polish the bone.

And the front of the finished strap-end. The gloss does not show as well in this picture but it was taken on the same day at nearly the same time as the above photo. The polish did not work as well on the deeper carvings of the front but it still looks nice.

From start to finish this project took about 120 hrs to complete. Spending that much time really makes you appreciate the art and skill of the craftsmen of the 10th Century.

Once I have gotten over the "Never want to look at bone again" attitude I developed during the making process, I want to make a bone buckle that ties into the strap end in some way. Perhaps I will replicate the interlace or perhaps it will have the bird faces on it. I don't think the buckle will be done this year.




This is a photo of the original strap end taken by a visitor to the Museum and posted on Flicker. It shows the details, especially the ladder etchings much more clearly than the photo obtained from the museum directly (see second photo).

In retrospect, comparing my reproduction to the photo of the original, I can see that I made my carving far deeper than the original. Perhaps when it was brand new the original had deeper lines but I do not think so.

I opted to NOT recreate the ladder etchings. I suspect in the original it was added to make it more obvious which straps were up and which were down in the carving. Due to the depth of my carving and the relief aspect that I used, the ladder etchings are not a requirement and I did not feel that they would add anything to my piece.

At a later date I may decide to add the ladder etchings but for now I am done with my replica.