X is for Xylography - A-Z Challenge

Xylography - The art of engraving on wood.

Thomas Bewick. Barn Owl (Tyto alba) in History of British Birds. 1847.

We've all seen wood carvings (xyloglyphy) and marvel at the intricasies of the cut. Who hasn't picked up a pen knife and tried to carve something, only to discover that it just might take more practice than we're ready to give. 

And, I can't have been the only one to get a xylopyrography (woodburning) kit for Christmas, as a child. Fun, fun, fun.

But xylography art as shown above with Thomas Bewick's Barn Owl just blows me away. This is wood engraving.  Something that is done so meticulously that it can be added to press composites to create newspapers. Each line is no higher than the text tiles it nestles in so that printing is seamless -- and, it is almost limitless in repetitive printing. Give yourself a treat and take a look at these engravings.

And, we've all heard of Dremel tools, fantastic engraving/carving tools of the late 20th Century. No question, they make fast work of what used to be so laborious. But, these engravings were done by hand! Yes, by hand! And with a special cutting tool called a burin (that's a cutting tool with a V-shaped tip). It's done on the end of a block of wood rather than the soft side used by current laser engravers, which are cost-prohibitive to home hobbyists. Just look at all the cutting lines, all 8,935,632 of them. The hand skill is extraordinary when viewed from this perspective. Does anyone want to give me one? No pressure; just askin' 

It goes without saying that Bewick had no time for blogging, but what a legacy. Have you ever tried xylography?

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