Pietre dure
The Florentine craft of pictorial stone inlay — birds, florals and heraldic compositions in lapis lazuli, malachite and jasper. Waterjet roughing, then each piece fitted by hand at the bench to a 0.8mm joint.
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Lapis lazuli, malachite, jasper, agate, marbles chosen for veining
Full-size cartoon, waterjet roughing, hand-fitting at the bench
0.8mm target, closed by hand
10–16 weeks from approved cartoon
Pietre dure is painting with stone. Every feather and petal is a separate piece of hardstone, chosen for the vein that will read as shadow or plumage, rough-cut on the waterjet and closed by hand at the bench. A single panel can hold several thousand pieces.
Panels are assembled on backing boards in the atelier, photographed section by section for approval, and shipped framed and crated — installed, the surface reads as a painting that happens to be stone.
Stone painting, installed
