Tuesday we learned about stone masonry. An expert came to the Conservation Center and taught us the techniques of sculpting stone blocks. We worked with tools on large blocks that they provided. We each got a block and learned the process of planning and constructing an arch. By the end we each had sculpted a block of the arch, and then put it all together to make the arch in the courtyard. The arch wasn't perfect but it stood, which is the important thing!
On Wednesday we went to a blacksmith in Yoqne'am to learn about metalsmithing. The blacksmith taught us how to shape iron in the furnace. We started by learning how to turn a round rod square, and then back to round. Then we tapered the end to different lengths, and then cut it. Then we moved on to making nails, which were more difficult. We finished by learning a little artwork, creating leaves that could be hung from a keychain. It was really cool working with the iron, anvil and tools and creating metal pieces. Even though some of us got a little burned, we all had fun. By the end we had definitely improved our metalsmithing skills
Today (Thursday) we woke up really early to head to Bet She'an, where we worked on conserving a mosaic floor. The work was very similar to what we did in Caesarea, but the area was smaller so we were able to finish a lot more. The mosaic had design on it, and part of the work was putting the tesserae back where they belonged to fill in the missing parts of the mosaic. Where we knew what the design was we recreated it, but if there were large gaps we did not add anything. After the work was done we took a short tour of the site, but did not go up onto the tel. By this time the temperature was around 40 degrees (over 100 degrees Fahrenheit), so we were okay with not spending a long time in the sun. We ended with some ice cream in the shade at the visitors center and gift shop.
No comments:
Post a Comment