Woodworking

This project aims to analyze and interpret a substantial collection of a specific type of material culture produced in Iran and Central Asia mainly during the Timurid period (c. 1370 to c. 1510), namely woodcarvings. While only few examples from a secular context have survived, the bulk of the material, mainly
doors, carved wood latticework (mashrabiyas), minbars and cenotaphs, belongs or belonged to religious buildings, mosques, madrasas and mausolea. The latter are often shrines of descendants of the Imams, found all over Iran, but with a strong focus in the northern provinces of Mazandaran and Gilan, areas that are rich in trees and therefore in wood, too. Many objects contain inscriptions of various length. In addition to quotations from religious texts (Qur’an and hadith, among others) they afford historical information on the names of the patrons and wood worker(s) (najjār) and the dates when the objects were produced, permitting us to establish a framework of dated woodwork for the 14th to 16th centuries. Beyond its historical and art historical approach, this project also has a heritage-related aspect: the “virtual protection” of material which has been and still is under permanent threat to be neglected, over-restored, or stolen.

Among the categories of products from the territory of medieval Bolgar the items made of wood are considered the most rare. It is connected, first of all, with not possibility of preservation of organic matter (including wood) in the cultural layer of Bolgar. The exception is considered for the items affected by fire. This study has been intended to fill in information about the development of the craft for the treatment of wood turning and craft production at Bulgar during the Golden Horde period. The findings made of wood derived from the territory of the trade and craft quarter and the building of urban market are examined in the paper: the case for sales of inventory, parts, moucharaby (mashrabia), double-sided ridges. All these items were found in objects and layer of fire which have been associated with the capture of the town by Bulak-Timur in 1361. The technique of selection, preservation and research of samples from charred wood are presented by the authors. Samples of parts, moucharaby and bilateral ridges allowed to determine the type of wood from which were made presented products. For this purpose, three sections in transverse, radial and tangential directions were made on each of the samples. In a number of cases scraping from samples in the specified directions was used. As a result, the authors are able to establish that the masters of wood processing used local species of deciduous trees: maple and birch as well as imported wood – boxwood.

Among the categories of products from the territory of medieval Bolgar the items made of wood are considered the most rare. It is connected, first of all, with not possibility of preservation of organic matter (including wood) in the cultural layer of Bolgar. The exception is considered for the items affected by fire. This study has been intended to fill in information about the development of the craft for the treatment of wood turning and craft production at Bulgar during the Golden Horde period. The findings made of wood derived from the territory of the trade and craft quarter and the building of urban market are examined in the paper: the case for sales of inventory, parts, moucharaby (mashrabia), double-sided ridges. All these items were found in objects and layer of fire which have been associated with the capture of the town by Bulak-Timur in 1361. The technique of selection, preservation and research of samples from charred wood are presented by the authors. Samples of parts, moucharaby and bilateral ridges allowed to determine the type of wood from which were made presented products. For this purpose, three sections in transverse, radial and tangential directions were made on each of the samples. In a number of cases scraping from samples in the specified directions was used. As a result, the authors are able to establish that the masters of wood processing used local species of deciduous trees: maple and birch as well as imported wood – boxwood.

Среди категорий изделии с территории средневекового Болгара наиболее редкой
являются предметы из дерева. Связано это, в первую очередь, с не возможностью со-
хранения органики (в том числе и древесины) в культурном слое Болгара. Исключе-
ние составляют предметы подвергшиеся воздействию огня. Данная работа призвана
восполнить информацию о развитии ремесла по обработке древесины и токарного ре-
месленного производства Болгара в золотоордынский период. В статье рассмотрены
находки из дерева с территории торгово-ремесленного квартала и здания городского
базара: пенал для торгового инвентаря, детали мушараби (машарабии), двусторонние
гребни. Все эти предметы происходят из объектов и слоя пожара, связанного с захва-
том города Булак-Тимуром в 1361 г. Авторами представлена методика отбора, сохра-
нения и исследования образцов из обугленной древесины. Образцы деталей мушараби
и двусторонних гребней позволили определить породу древесины, из которой были
изготовлены представленные изделия. Для этого с каждого из образцов было выпол-
нено по три среза в поперечном, радиальном и тангенциальном направлениях, а в ряде
случаев использовался соскоб с образцов в указанных направлениях. В результате уда-
лось установить, что мастерами по обработке древесины использовались как местные
породы лиственных деревьев: клен, береза, так и привозная древесина – самшит.

In Roman archaeology, objects related to crafts are almost always categorised according to the material on which they were used; metalworking, leatherworking, woodworking, etc. (Crummy, 1983; Duvauchelle, 1990; Manning, 1985). Whilst convenient, these categories are simplistic modern constructs, which encourage the supposition that ‘woodworking’ or ‘metalworking’ were emic categories of practice that would be recognised in the Roman period, rather than etic divisions designed for the convenience of modern researchers. It is the contention of this paper that this is not a satisfactory end point for an analysis of ancient crafts. A prime example of this is ‘woodworking’. Modern craftspeople who work with wood may be joiners, wheelwrights, luthiers, builders or hobbyists, each of whom will have a very different lived experience of ‘being a craftsperson’.

These issues are particularly relevant to the Roman period. In Rome, tombstones single individuals out as chest makers, comb makers, interior woodworkers or two-wheeled cart builders (Ulrich, 2007, pp. 8–9). Clearly, these provide a direct link to peoples’ self-identification, but how can we approach these issues in a provincial society with a limited epigraphic record? The Roman period also sees the introduction of an incredibly diverse range of craft tools (Tisserand, 2011), many with apparently highly specialised functions. However, we must be careful not to assume that specialised tools automatically indicate increased specialisation and status on the part of the craftspeople using them.

By using a range of sources of evidence (including tools, preserved wooden objects and waste, structures and writing tablets), this paper will seek to build a picture of craft practice in Roman London from the ground up, focussing on the technologies involved in woodworking. Using the concepts of practice theory  and ‘technologies in use’ (Edgerton, 1999), we will attempt to discern how practice was used to construct professional identities, and how the physical actions of carrying out crafts shaped people’s interactions and lived experiences.

Dokumentationen av tolv takkonstruktioner vid Örlogshamnen i Karlskrona kan sammanfattas i några viktiga slutsatser. Takstolen är oftast byggnadens konstruktivt mest komplicerade del. Dess struktur kräver uppfinningsrika lösningar anpassade till varje byggnads behov. De som tog sig uppgiften att uppföra dessa takkonstruktioner lämnade många värdefulla kulturhistoriska spår efter sig som berättar om deras hantverkskunskap, arbetsmetoder och identitet. Denna dokumentation vittnar om takkonstruktionernas dolda skatter ch uppmärksammar deras känslighet för förändringar.

În condițiile în care numeroase biserici de lemn se degradează, iar alte nenumărate construcții valoroase din același material dispar fără urme, din întreaga țară, identificarea unor bârne dintr-o veche biserică maramureșeană cu ocazia demolării unei școli are toate șansele să rămână lipsită de importanță. Ce date noi se pot obține din aceste fragmente refolosite într-o construcție secundară și care este valoarea lor? Ce pot aceste lemne spune în plus despre arta și tehnica de a construi biserici într-o regiune unde încă se mai păstrează multe biserici de lemn? În acest articol doresc să arăt potențialul documentar pe care îl au câteva bârne ale unei foste biserici de lemn pentru studiul arhitecturii sacrale din Maramureș, un domeniu reprezentativ de afirmare a identității regiunii.

This study is based on the analysis of materials gathered during field studies by the “Student Ethnographic Society”  National Youth Public Association, and identifies and describes the distinct architectural features of particular structural elements of a traditional popular dwelling, specifically doors and windows, as well as their regional and local distinctive characteristics.  It presents the main peculiarities of their design and ornament typical of the Dzvina basin region. The text provides a review of several most distinct and interesting examples of woodworking artefacts of that kind recorded in the area.

2013 thesis paper detailing a comparison between sacred woodworking in both New Mexican Santero traditions and the work of the New England Shakers, specifically addressing each aspect of the sacred that comes into play with these devotional objects: the maker, the audience, and the material itself. It also involves some newer research addressing the origins of santos making, particularly concerning don Bernardo Miera y Pacheco and his son, and draws a distinction between first and second generation santeros. The traditions of the Shakers and Santeros are compared and contrasted to further investigate what would qualify as sacred v. profane woodworking.

London was the administrative centre for and largest city in Roman Britain. After centuries of excavation, Londinium is one of the best understood cities in the Empire. London is also home to one of the most exceptional collections of craft and agricultural tools in the Roman world. These objects represent a wide range of practices, including woodwork, metalwork, leatherwork, masonry, agriculture, and animal husbandry. Due to excellent preservation in waterlogged contexts, many are in exceptional condition.

This thesis brings together c.837 metal (mostly iron) tools from multiple collections, many of which have not been published before. Using a combination of detailed typological study and theoretical perspectives on technology and practice, this thesis provides an innovative insight
into society and economy amongst the working people of a Roman city; a diverse population of locals, immigrants, specialists and amateurs. A typological discussion identifies these usually neglected objects with reference to French and German literature, highlighting new types for the first time in Britain, and demonstrating a close connection to Continental working practices. These artefacts are then used as the basis for a discussion of craft and agricultural practice in London, focussing on how tools were made, used and discarded. Tools are synthesised with evidence from finished objects, waste, tool marks, structures, epigraphy, iconography and classical sources. This discussion reveals that craft
practices were highly specialised, with numerous distinct professions which cannot be accurately condensed to ‘woodworking’ or 'leatherworking’. Tools were used in working practices which shaped peoples’ lives; either limiting their opportunities of social mobility or
providing avenues to express pride in their work. Several industries were controlled in part by the state, or by Roman citizens. Finally, a detailed contextual analysis reveals high levels of metalwork consumption, with deposition in the Walbrook valley largely reflecting rubbish disposal, and not ritual activity.

In colonial New England from the latter part of the 17th and early 18th century, it is generally recognized that popular iconography and style in metropolitan areas shifts and adapts at a higher pace than that of more rural isolated communities, moving outward from population centers, exactly like fashion and style trends today. Far from being simply behind the times however, rural craftsmen can generate a style outside of normative cosmopolitan practices. Within the rural landscape can be found pockets of individual expression with little discernible connection to nearby metropolitan areas. The earliest gravestones of my colonial New England ancestors are found scattered around eastern Massachusetts. On the outskirts of Boston, in the towns of Newton, Woburn, and Roxbury, the markers are carved with the traditional winged skull (heavily used by the English settlers, but possibly with iconographic origins in Scotland. 1) This, often terrifying, flying death's head is perhaps a literal conflation of the Latin phrases " memento mori " (remember death) and " tempus fugit (time flies). This iconography emerges from a society that wishes to communicate the dread and fear of death, with a behavioral message not to squander one's days, and with the purpose of making this message available to all, including the illiterate and the very young. The pictographs (including skulls, bones, wings, hourglasses, coffins, burial tools, foliage, fruits and gourds) seem to shout; do not forget your mortality, we all are of the Earth! This message was not limited to the burying grounds, and its iconography can be found in printed material, works its way into other sculptural pieces, and was prolific throughout early New England. The stones made for my ancestors further away from Boston, in the more remote coastal communities of Ipswich and Rowley, contain a completely different type of visual language and a very specific one at that. Rather than winged skulls, coffins, and crossed bones, we see simplistic, even primitive, wide-­‐eyed faces, surrounded by pinwheels and rosettes. Representation of plant life remains, but is abstracted to a high degree. Is this evidence of a conscious rejection of the gothic death's-­‐head sculptural tradition by the stone workers in this rural area, or did this iconographic shift happen organically over time? It has been speculated that the rejection of the grim death's head imagery in this geographic region is related to the harsh losses suffered by the area during the diphtheria (or throat distemper) epidemic 2. The communities along the Merrimack River were overloaded with pain and death, which may have resulted in a 1 Willshire, Betty. Scottish Gravestones and the New England Winged Skull. Markers II, 1983