Bone Carving-Lucknow
The craving process involves the following steps:
- Cutting
- Cleaning
- Bleaching
- Carving
- Finishing
Cutting:
The bone once brought from the market is cut into desired pieces. Firstly the upper layer is removed by scraping and then cutting is done using Basuli. These cut pieces are further shaped using a cutting machine. Bone smells during the cutting and buffing. Apart from this it doesn’t smell afterward.
Cleaning:
After cutting the bone is boiled in hot water along with soda. This helps in removing the fat and other greasy elements from the surface of the bone. Boiling process continues for 3-4 hours. It also helps in removing the foul smell to some extent.
Bleaching:
After cleaning, the bone is dipped in a solution of hydrogen peroxide and kept in sun for 6-7 hours. This helps in whitening the bone.
Carving:
Bones are cut in desired shapes and stuck/ joined together with the help of adhesive (fevicol). After drying, marking is done with the help of a compass. Holes are made using drilling machine and then the carving start by hand using different tools.
Finishing:
After carving, the product is buffed using different grades of buff. This brings shine in the product. The intricate pieces are also sometime dyed in different colors as per the requirement.
The whole process of processing the bone, carving and finishing takes at least 4-5 days. The processes are practiced only by the males. The best time to work on bone is monsoon and winters. During summer due to excessive heat bones tend to develop crack and therefore artisans work in shades to avoid any kind of damage. The damaged left-over is recycled to make manure and used in farms.
