…An instrument is made from pure steel, the length of the greatest finger, and as thick as a straw, but thicker in the middle and square. One end is placed in a handle, and at the other end one side must be filed from the upper to the lower angle; but the lower, which is filed slender towards the point, is longer; this being heated, is tempered in water…
– Theophilus, On Diverse Arts, Book III, Chapter 11
Theophilus describes a number of handtools similiar in form to those used today by setters and engravers (pictured). He mentions in the first quote that the length of the tools should correspond to the length of the greatest finger, which might indicate that the tool size should match the hand of the jeweller – I did a short setting course with John Russel in 2008, and we spent the first half day making scorpers that fitted our hands properly (he’s a very good teacher, and does short courses at Birmingham City Universitys’ School of Jewellery in the summer.
Slender scraping irons are likewise made, but somewhat broad at the end, sharp on one side, large and small, of which some are made curved back at will, according to the mode of work. They make also instruments formed in the same manner, but blunt, for polishing the work.
– Theophilus, On Diverse Arts, Book III, Chapter 12
The two quotes constitute the majority of Theophilus’ description of such handtools, and they are probably described together for a reason – their manufacture, and the handles they are mounted in are all much the same. The text suggests that there are many different shapes, so any modern tool shape is probably reasonably authentic, so long as it could be made by a blacksmith. In the case of the burnishers (the blunt tools for polishing that are mentioned), it says in my copy of An Illustrated Dictionary of Jewellery that they could be made from agate, bloodstone or haematite, as well as from steel. Although Theophilus doesn’t mention these, an investigation of which minerals were available in England and Scandanavia would indicate which of them, if any, are appropriate for the period.
I’m not sure how much I’ll need these kinds of tools; I suppose that it depends on the work I do – any engraving is likely to be minimal, as it’s something in which I have no training. In most situations where I need to put decoration on the front of objects, I expect to use chasing techniques. For setting, I’ve only had a little training, but most gemstones from the early middle ages are bezel set (rub-over or collet set), or even glued in, so a bullstick and a burnisher should fulfill my needs in that area. Of all of these processes, burnishing is the one I expect to use most.
By luck, or maybe because of my dad, I’ve got access to a couple of chests of tools bought from retired jewellers. Some of these tools are very worn, but often they just need some love and attention. In one chest there is a full set of engraving tools that need new handles, so I’ll bring them all up to spec. I’ll also need some kind of grips for workpieces – a swiss clamp seems to be a reasonable tool for small items, and presumably a bench vice for larger pieces. I doubt that complex tools like the engravers block were available in the middle ages. I have a bag of shellac for holding smaller items, but The Goldsmith’s Handbook by George E. Gee suggests an alternative mixture: 4 parts burgundy resin (from pine trees), 4 parts of some other resin, possibly shellac, 2 parts gypsum plaster and 2 parts beeswax.
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I’m currently attending the New Approach School for Jewelers and we’re being taught how to use gravers and I love them! You can really clean up your work with the use of a graver!
I’ve only had a limited experience with gravers; when you say “cleaning up” do you mean bright-cutting the settings around stones and so on, or something more involved on the surfaces of the items?
Swiss clamp, more generally known as ring clamp, is indeed early, there’s at least one extant find in antler, believe it was Viking period, Instead of a band and hinge in the center they used a large loose rivet though both halves, but the principle of wedge in one end equals clamp forge at the other was exactly the same.
Thanks for your comment. I’ve seen a drawing of a find which appears in Coatsworth & Pinders “Art of the Anglo-Saxon Goldsmith”, which fits the design that you describe. Thank goodness for that! It would be hard to do small work without clamps.
Please note that some of these blog posts are pretty old now – hopefully one day I’ll have time to post some updated versions.
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