Cire Perdue
The Lost Wax Method (Cire Perdue)
Many Early Glass pieces pieces were manufactured by the Lost Wax Method.
Lost Wax is a cheap and fairly easy method of making single pieces.
How It Works -
A Sculptor carves his sculpture in wax - this cam be intricate or simple.
It is very easy to carve wax quickly and with simple tools.
Also it is easy to repair mistakes.
A Mould is poured around the finished sculpture.
This is usually made of Plaster of Paris.
Each Mould will usually only be used a few times.
The mould is heated and the wax melts and is poured out through holes left for that purpose.
Molten Glass is carefully poured into the mould.
It is left to cool down naturally.
Before 1905 this was the main method of making Glass ornaments and figurines.
Collectors love early pieces using this method as they are all slightly different.
The trouble with the Lost Wax Method was that it was unsuitable for long run production.
Industrialised methods came into being and only rarely was the Lost Wax method used by manufacturers for any major project
The method is still used by some Glass Artists for low run and individual Pieces of Art Glass
More information about Artn Nouveau Techniques at Lalique Art Nouveau
