Establishing research links to support the digital transformation of Egypt’s handicraft industries
Inlay technique – traditional execution
This process uses a traditional technique in the execution to produce a design based on an 8-pointed star pattern located at the Minbar of Shaykh al-Burdayni Mosque in Cairo, Egypt. The mosque is from the Ottoman period but its ornaments resonates with the Mamluk style.
This process follows the same steps than the modern technique when designing the inlaid product.
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Elaborating of the inlaid product
Cutting and shaping the inlaid product
This is the process where the inlaid pieces used (mother-of-pearls, ebony and bones) are cut, shaped and fixed together so as to form the pattern in the decorative piece.
The cutting and shaping stage includes slicing the slabs of inlay materials to smaller thicknesses (usually around 1.5-2mm) and according to the lengths, widths and right angles provided in the design. Also, this stage involves the making of bands which are quite common in traditional inlay. Bands are slabs of various inlay materials. Depending on the design, these could be bones and ebony or wood and bones which are glued together in a certain order and then tight with a thread for almost a week to dry. These bands, after cleaning and slicing, are later used to make the internal frames that contour the design. This stage also includes cutting the main wooden frame that encloses all the inlay pieces as shown in the design.
These steps for making the main wooden frame that enclose the inlay design.
Cut four pieces of mahogany wood with the following dimensions: L: 15cm, W: 2.5cm and H: 0.2cm using the table saw machine.
On the traditional mitre box cut the end of mahogany slabs to the angle 45° using the traditional backsaw.
These steps are for making the band that contours the design, band of three which consists of two slabs of ebony and one slab of bone in between.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to 3mm and slice the slabs of ebony and bones.
Glue the slabs together according to the following order: ebony, bone, ebony and firmly tight them with a white thread.
Let the band dry for almost a week
Once the band dried out, untie and clean it from any glue residuals using a scraper.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to 1.5mm and slice the band longitudinally.
On the traditional mitre box cut the band slices according to the needed angles as per the design. In our design which is based on a square grid, the angles are 22.5°, 45° and 90°.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to 1.5mm and slice the band longitudinally.
These steps are for cutting and shaping the inlay pieces.
Review the dimensions and angles of the inlay pieces in the design.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to the width of mahogany/ebony pieces and slice the slabs of mahogany/ebony accordingly.
Use the traditional mitre box as well as the traditional backsaw for shaping the mahogany and ebony pieces according to the right angles.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to 1.5mm and slice the band longitudinally.
As for the mother-of-pearls, use the table saw cutting machine to slice the mother-of-pearls into thinner stripes as per their width provided in the design which is 1.2cm in our case.
Adjust the depth of the table saw machine to 1.5mm and slice the band longitudinally.
Cut the mother-of-pearl stripes into smaller squares (total of 8 squares) and rectangles (total of 8 rectangles) using the table saw machine.
By using the table saw machine shape the top and bottom angles (45°) of the smaller rectangles.
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Joining and fixing the inlaid product
This is the stage for assembling and gluing all the cut pieces as per the design. This stage resembles joining pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together.
Fix and glue the four pieces of the frame on the square piece of mahogany wood with white glue.
Clamp the mahogany piece on an even surface, design face down, and let it dry overnight.
Once the square mahogany is dried, apply enough amount of white glue inside the main frame and start placing all the inlay pieces in order as per the design using the pick tool from boarders to the centre. It is easier to use the wooden pick tool for mother-of-pearl and bone pieces whilst the metal pick tool for the ebony as well as the mahogany.
You might find some spaces between pieces which is quite normal. So, adjust the pieces properly so that the fit together whilst the glue is still moist.
Let it dry overnight.
The final stage of any wood working is finishing where all the restoration, sanding and polishing steps take place.
Form a paste to fill any pours in the piece, this paste is composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), glue and ebony or mahogany dust depending on the part you want to fill. Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the formula formed by three main elements: carbon, oxygen, and calcium.
Fill all the pours/gaps precisely and let it dry overnight.
Sand the piece using a grinder machine until you even the whole surface.
