What does chased mean in jewelry?

Chasing, metalwork technique used to define or refine the forms of a surface design and to bring them to the height of relief required. Chasing is the opposite of embossing, or repoussé, in which the metal is worked from the back to give a higher relief.

What do you mean by repousse and chasing?

Repoussé (French: [ʁəpuse] ( listen)) or repoussage ([ʁəpusaʒ] ( listen)) is a metalworking technique in which a malleable metal is shaped by hammering from the reverse side to create a design in low relief. Chasing or embossing is a similar technique in which the piece is hammered on the front side, sinking the metal.

What does chased mean in medieval times?

Meaning “run after” for any purpose developed mid-14c. Related: Chased; chasing. Ancient European words for “pursue” often also cover “persecute” (Greek dioko, Old English ehtan), and in Middle English chase also meant “to persecute.” Many modern ones often derive from words used primarily for the hunting of animals.

How do you use chasing and repousse?

1. Repoussé the metal. Take your repoussé hammer and punches, turn the metal over and hammer within the areas that you have just marked out.
2. Prepare for chasing. Once you’ve repousséd the metal, remove it from the pitch and clean it before chasing.
3. Redraw the design.
4. Use your chasing tools.
5. Finish off the piece.

What is the difference between chasing and engraving?

Engraving is done by removing a narrow fillet of metal with a cutting or graving tool, whereas Chasing is made by depressing the surface with a blunt point and hammering along the line to be delineated, but without removing any material.

What is a repousse hammer?

This repousse hammer (sometimes called a chasing hammer) is a versatile tool for forming and raising shapes from sheet metal. Sheet metal is supported in a bed of warm pitch and punches are struck against it to bend and stretch it from the reverse to raise a design.

What does repoussé mean?

Repoussé, method of decorating metals in which parts of the design are raised in relief from the back or the inside of the article by means of hammers and punches; definition and detail can then be added from the front by chasing or engraving.

What is the difference between repousse and embossing?

When an object is embossed, it is decorated using a combination of both the chasing and repoussé technique. Typically, repoussé is first applied to the object to form the basic decorative shapes and patterns and then this decoration is chased to create further, more intricate detail.

What does it mean when a woman is chased?

to try very hard to persuade someone to have a relationship with you: She’s always chasing (after) men. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases. Wanting things.

Who is a chaste woman?

Chaste can be defined as “pure and virtuous,” but basically it means “not having sex.” This word is related to the Latin source of the verb castrate “to remove a man’s testicles,” so it’s definitely related to sex.

What is chasing in silversmithing?

Chasers use tools including chasing hammers and shaped steel punches to decorate the front side of a metal object to give it shape and form. Their tools allow them to raise, depress or push aside the metal without removing any of the material. “Chasing is one of the oldest forms of metal decoration.

What is Red pitch?

Chaser’s pitch is a thermal adhesive used by goldsmiths, silversmiths, coppersmiths, and other metal cold-working artisans to hold a metal plate for repoussage and “chasing” (embossing) while it is being hammered out. It must strongly adhere to the metal while it is cooling.

What’s the purity of a sterling silver plate?

In 1719 Parliament established the standard for purity for sterling silver and instituted a mark indicating that an item is of sufficient purity to be deemed sterling. That standard means an item is made of 92.5% pure silver .

How can you tell if a piece of silver has value?

Look at the bottom of each piece. If it doesn’t say sterling, it is not silver. The best sterling makers are Tiffany, Georg Jensen, Puiforcat and Buccellati. The value of makers like Gorham, Towle, Kirk, Steiff and Reed and Barton depends totally on the pattern; if it’s monogramed, the value is even less.

What are the symbols on a sterling silver plate?

The Gorham company’s mark was a row of three emblems: a lion (for sterling), an anchor (for its base in Rhode Island), and a “G” (its initial). Silver plate has its own codes in the United States and abroad.

What does the 925 mark on sterling silver mean?

Old time Scandinavian silversmiths used a lower content silver alloy to make their items, that is what the 830 means. Standard Sterling Silver has a 92.5 percent silver content with 7.5 percent of another metal added to it to strengthen the piece. Therefore, the most common mark for sterling silver is 925.