|
|
A Brief History of Ornamental Turning
"Life is short and art long; the crisis fleeting;
experience perilous, and decision difficult."
...Hippocrates-400BC
"The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne
Th'assay so hard, so sharp the conquering."
...Chaucer-1380AD
(NOTE: The links to illustrations in the text below link back to
the archived website, where there is additional
descriptive information for each illustration. Since the links on the
archived pages work only within the archive itself, do not use those links
to return to this page. Instead just click your browser's BACK button
to return to this narrative.)
Since we are dealing here with a specialized form of lathe turning,
it would be well to give some of the history of the lathe itself.
The name, which is a linguistic curiosity, comes from the English
lath which was a pole or split strip of wood, and was used
as a spring power source for early lathes. In India, for example,
a lathe was called a chakra, a wheel, and it is common to
other languages than English that the term for lathe has a relationship
to a wheel, or circle. The lathe is a tool of rotation and the works
generated thereon are always 'solids of rotation'. That is to say
that if a cross-section be taken perpendicular to the axis of rotation,
this section will always be a true circle.
Turning is the process of shaping an object mounted in a lathe into
a rounded form by applying tools against the workpiece as it spins.
Plain turning creates objects whose every section is a perfect circle.
Ornamental turning, however, works upon the plain-turned shape to
apply some form of ornament by means of an externally powered cutting
device. The cut surface which results can evidence great complexity
of decoration. A variety of types of motion and interaction of workpiece
with cutter is possible. The workpiece may be held stationary by an
indexing device while an external cutting tool is brought in to make
a cut; when indexed and the cuts repeated, this can create a basketwork
effect of pattern among many others. Additionally, the work and cutter
may move in a synchronized motion maintained by means of gear trains
much as in the cutting of screw threads on a machinist's lathe. A
rocking motion is also a possible complication of technique when using
a specialized ornamental lathe called a rose engine. The embellishment
of plain-turned objects with designs can elevate merely utilitarian
objects into the realm of the decorative arts.
The lathe, termed "the engine of civilization," unique amongst machine
tools in that it is the only machine capable of replicating itself,
is also capable of manufacturing all other machine tools. Its history
dates back at least 3000 years. There are extant fragments of an Etruscan
bowl dating to 700 BC. An illustration of a lathe carved on an Egyptian
tomb wall dates to 300 BC. The Egyptians undoubtedly turned the legs
of chairs and stools and other long objects. Though they did not leave
us with descriptions of their lathes, the Egyptians did describe and
picture their potters' wheels and bow drills, both forms of vertical
lathes.
The lathe was certainly known in Grecian and Roman times, though
no accounts remain of it or the tools employed in turning. Cicero
and Pliny refer to the turners or vascularii, and the master
Greek sculptor Phidias is assumed to have turned cups before encrusting
them with ivory and then carving them with chisel and file. Herodotus
is quoting as saying, "But I smile when I see many persons describing
the circumference of the earth, who have no sound reason to guide
them; they describe the ocean flowing round the earth, which is made
circular as if by a lathe." Virgil, as translated by Dryden, describes
in the following passage a process whereby wooden bowls were plain-turned
and ornament was then hand carved upon them:
Two bowls I have well turned of beechen wood;
Both by divine Alcimedon were made;
To neither of them yet the lip is laid.
The lids are ivy: grapes in clusters lurk
Beneath the carving of this curious work.
A primitive apparatus used in India is likely
illustrative of many of these early lathes. The
Indian lathe was portable, and set up by the turner at the site where
work was needed. Two wooden poles were driven in the ground and the work
mounted between them on centers which were simply round nails or spikes
driven through the mounting poles. A bar or rod was then lashed with cords
to the two poles to serve as a toolrest. In use, the turner sat on the
ground and guided the cutting tool edge with his toes while holding the
handle with his hands. Motion was imparted to the workpiece by means of
a cord wrapped around the workpiece which was pulled by a helper. Cutting
could only be done on one-half of the motion, that of the workpiece towards
the tool. Early Persian and Arabian lathes work on a similar principle,
but are more sophisticated in that they are built into a box and the power
is supplied by a bow and string.
| CONTENTS |
The Lathe Through The Middle Ages in
European History
The lathe was introduced into England at least
by 200BC by the Iron Age Celts. In the West, improvements to the lathe
appear to have arisen from a different method of rotating the lathe conditioned
by the European habit of selecting the erect posture for most mechanical
operations. One end of the driving cord was fastened to a treadle or stirrup,
it was then passed around the workpiece and then the other end was fastened
overhead to a pole or spring above the lathe.
Such a technique greatly increased the power of rotation and left both
hands free for controlling the tool. The paucity of written records leaves
us little information about the lathe during medieval times, and it is
not until the Renaissance that evidence of the use of lathes appears.
Gio Paulo Lomazzo described the oval turning of Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
in 1590. The following verses accompany an illustration of a turner in
the book "Panoplia Omnium," by Hartman Schopper, published at Frankfort-on-the-Main
in 1568:
A turner I:--with unremitting skill,
I turn from yellow box, whate'er you will:
Boxes of shapes unnumbered we produce
And who can tell our boxes' varied use;
There may'st thou store, secure from stranger's view,
Thy noble treasures of the brightest hue,
There too the ball is made, which--wondrous sight!
Struck by the wand, rebounds in varied flight,
Here too the top, that warms the schoolboy's force,
And whirls on level ground its well urged course.
The first book dealing specifically with ornamental
turning as well as 'plain' turning was published by L'Abbe Charles Plumier
in 1701. Joseph Moxon described turnery in his book Mechanick Exercises
or the Doctrine of Handy-Works in 1703. Denis Diderot D'Alembert
prepared the first encyclopedia from 1751 to 1772, and therein illustrates
lathes and the work done on them. The great classic of early turning,
however, is Le Manuel du Tourneur published by L. E. Bergeron
in 1796. This comprehensive set of two volumes, containing 96 plates,
was published for the aristocracy rather than for the artisan. In great
detail it illustrates the state of the art
at that time. By this era, lathes had developed into very sophisticated
machines from their humble origins.
| CONTENTS |
The Invention of the Modern
Lathe(ca. 1700)
The modern lathe was not actually invented, but was a product of
the refinement of input from many sources. Its evolution was one of
gradual improvement. One key element to this development was the introduction
of a large flywheel separate from the spindle that could serve to
maintain a uniform speed and always allow the lathe to rotate in the
same direction so that cutting could be continuous. Moxon, in 1677,
describes the advantages of this improvement to powering the lathe:
Besides the commanding heavy Work about, the Wheel rids
Work faster
off than the Pole can do; because the springing up of the Pole makes
an
intermission in running about of the Work; but with the Wheel
the Work
runs always the same way; so that the Tool need never be off it,
unless it be to examine the Work as it is doing.
So with a flywheel to store energy and redistribute it with a uniform
motion, and a treadle and crank to allow the turner to stand and pump power
to the machine with his legs, the turner had both hands free to manipulate
tools.
Another important refinement to the lathe was the introduction of
iron bearers for the bed instead of wood. The iron would maintain
its alignment and if a carriage be mounted on a bearer of triangular
section, it would serve to keep it in a true relation to the lathe
axis for its whole length. The accurate bed then served as a platform
for the final refinement which was the moveable carriage connected
to the spindle by means of a gear train. In the 1780's, the French
inventor Jacques de Vaucanson (1709-82) built an industrial lathe
with a sliding tool carriage, advanced by a long screw. Then almost
simultaneously in 1797, Henry Maudslay (1771-1831) in England and
David Wilkinson (1771-1852) in the U.S. improved this lathe by adding
a sliding tool carriage geared to the spindle. By this means, the
carriage mounted with a cutting tool was able to move in synchronicity
with the spindle at a constant speed and the cutting of accurate and
repetitive screw threads became possible. This breakthrough heralded
the age of mass production and interchangeable parts. With lathes
this sophisticated by the end of the 18th century, ornamental turning
began to reach a state of high development.
| CONTENTS |
The Refinement of the Ornamental Lathe
by Holtzapffel, et al.
Generally considered in the same breath with the term "ornamental
turning" is the family name of Holtzapffel. John Jacob Holtzapffel
moved from Alsace to England in about 1785 and opened his engineer's
tool business in London in 1793. His first lathe was sold to a Mr.
Crisp on June 31st 1795, the outfit costing £ 25-4s-10d. When
one considers that today this would be over £ 2000, or $3000US,
and that the skilled mechanic of the day earned less than 8d per hour,
this lathe represented over 3 months wages. All of Holtzapffel's lathes
were numbered, and not all had full ornamental turning apparatus included.
By about 1805, after the Holtzapffel firm had reached nearly No. 500
in their numbering scheme, almost all lathes had iron beds instead
of the previously used mahogany wood beds. The last lathe sold was
Holtz. No 2557, made in 1913/14 and sold in Nov. 1928. No other maker
of ornamental lathes matched the productivity of the Holtzapffel family
in the field of ornamental lathes.
When John Jacob I died in 1835, about 1600 lathes had been sold by
his firm. Not all were fully equipped as ornamental lathes, but with
the large number that were, quite an impetus was given to ornamental
turning as a leisure occupation in England. The introduction of the
cutting frame by Holtzapffel allowed for significantly more complex
patterns to be cut as compared to what could be done previously with
only the drilling frame. The elder Holtzapffel standardized his screw
threads before 1800, his spindle thread being 9.45 threads per inch
for example, and the firm maintained this standard throughout all
the lathes they manufactured. This standardization was initiated long
before any kind of screw standards were established for industry at
large.
The son of John Jacob I, Charles, who joined the firm in 1827, began
the monumental series of five books that were called Turning and
Mechanical Manipulation in 1835. This ambitious effort, comprising
over 3000 pages and 1600-odd illustrations, was intended to be a complete
survey and overview of all the mechanical arts of the day. It was
not until 1884 that Vol. V was published by the son of Charles Holtzapffel,
John Jacob II. However, it was not until 1894, with the addition of
a revised and enlarged version of Vol. III, that the set was complete.
Today, Vol's. IV and V of this series are known as the "Bible of Ornamental
Turning" because of their wealth of information about all aspects
of the craft of ornamental turning. Charles managed the firm until
his death in 1847. He was considered a distinguished engineer, developing
and inventing various devices. An obituary notice remarked of him
that,
Mr. Holtzapffel probably never put his hand to a machine
which he did not improve, and his practice in the construction of machines
has been more miscellaneous probably than that of any other mechanist,
his workmanship more accurate, and his general mechanical arrangements
more refined...He had all the humility of genius without its eccentricities,
and his heart habitually overflowed with kindness towarrd everyone around
him.
Charles' wife, Amelia, ran the firm until 1853, and in 1867, Charles'
son, John Jacob II, became head of the firm until 1896. He died in
1897. A nephew of Charles, George William Budd, became head of the
firm in 1896. Few ornamental lathes were made after the turn of the
century and the 19th century was known as the zenith of the ornamental
turning lathe. Many lathes were sold to the aristocracy of England.
The earl of Harborough, for instance, bought nine Holtzapffel lathes
between 1812 and 1848. This was certainly not common, but is instructive
of the popularity of these machines once one developed an affinity
for OT.
The contribution of John Jacob Holtzapffel's work was significant
in several respects. As expressed by Walshaw (see
Bibliography), "First, he brought the cost of the machine down
to a figure which a mere 'gentleman' (or even a prosperous tradesman)
could afford, and, second, the design was both elegant and functional."
His designs were much improved over the lathes previously made on
the continent of Europe. Holtzapffel also was a master of marketing
apparatus to his clients over time. Improvements and additions to
apparatus increased the capability of his equipment and induced his
clients to continue to be his customers. The remarkable set of books
by the family were, in effect, an extensive set of owner's manuals
for their machines.
In addition to the Holtzapffels, other makers
produced ornamental lathes. Among them were the ornamental
lathes of John Evans (1843-1919) which were of high quality and counted
some improvements over the Holtzapffel lathes to their advantage. A large
number of lathes were attributed to his firm, and improved overhead drives,
sliderests and cutting frames marked the work of this talented machinist.
He also wrote a book on ornamental turning which some find much more easily
understandable than the Holtzapffel books. George Birch and Company made
a few ornamental lathes, but they were essentially engineers' metalworking
tools which were given the necessary components to do ornamental turning.
George Goyen, a retired South American railway engineer who took to making
lathes as a hobby, is generally credited with singlehandedly creating
the finest ornamental lathes ever produced. He probably made his lathes
for his friends' amateur use and only ten Goyen lathes are known to exist.
There were other makers such as George Plant, George Hines, Hulot, James
Munro, Joseph Fenn and James Lukin and many of them made lathes of a caliber
of workmanship equal to a Holtzapffel. Lukin also wrote a book (see Bibliography)
on ornamental turning and Frank Knox considered it "second only to Holtzapffel
in usefulness," as "Lukin clarifies much of what Holtzapffel leaves unclear."
There were indeed other toolmakers who made ornamental lathes, but these
makers are those who have left us with extant examples of their machines.
A typical example of an array
of ornamental cutters is seen in Evans' book. This was an assortment
of cutters that would be in a basic collection from any of the ornamental
lathe makers. Cutters such as these were mounted in the universal cutting
frame, the horizontal cutting frame or the vertical cutting frame and
could produce a great variety of pattern, especially if the cuts from
several cutters were combined in the design of the pattern.
Many specialized chucks and apparatus comprised a complete ornamental
turning lathe package.Typical of the presentation
of apparatus for a Holtzapffel OT lathe is this array of gears and accessories
for the spiral and reciprocator apparatus.
They are housed in a finely-crafted mahogany box, and are beautiful to
look at and in use. A drill frame was necessary to do work in which the
cutter rotated as a modern router bit would. Pearls and other features
could be created depending upon the profile of the cutter. An eccentric
cutting frame allowed for shallow circles to be cut with adjustments to
vary the diameter of the circle cut and its displacement from the central
axis of the piece. With careful thought and design, very intricate
patterns of a geometric nature could be rendered by this technique.
Other apparatus included a variety of special-purpose
chucks, such as the eccentric and rectilinear chucks. It was also possible
to create ellipses and, by means of a compensating index, create equal
divisions of the ellipse. A geometric chuck comprised of a complex set
of interacting gears would allow tracings to be made that would demonstrate
complex geometric curves, such as the epicycloidal pattern. Much ornamental
turning was done in ivory, as it produced the finest cuts and allowed
for great delicacy of pattern due to its hardness and strength. At times,
incredibly intricate work was performed by
the Holtzapffel firm to illustrate to the public the capabilities of their
machines.
A beautiful example of the finest work put
out by the Holtzapffel is in this Rose Engine Lathe,
one of only 8 ever made. These were a specialized type of ornamental lathe
in which the headstock rocked back and forth as controlled by a rubber
moving against a rosette or cam-like pattern mounted on the spindle at
the same time as the lathe spindle rotated. Rose engine work often reveals
flower patterns, and convoluted, symmetrical, multi-lobed organic patterns.
It has the potential to be very complex and to produce beautiful and unique
patterns unlike any other on the ornamental
lathe.
(The links to images in the text link back to the archived website, where there is further description of each image. Just click your browser's BACK button to return to this narrative.)
Excellent engraved plates of ornamental turning and an extensive
depiction of various OT apparatus can be found in Holtzapffel Vol.
V (see Bibliography). Much of the
historic ornamental turning machinery that has survived is now held
by collectors or is in museums. Only a small number of machines are
still being used for their intended purpose. Most of this machinery
bespeaks an era of unbounded optimism and is beautifully made and
a joy to view and use. They represent a time in history when quality
still meant "excellence." To my view, the makers and users of this
machinery were obviously on a quest to participate in the experience
of beauty and "a thing done well," and from our own perspective in
time, succeeded admirably.
| CONTENTS |
Some Ornamental Turners of the Past
Tsar Peter the Great of Russia ordered both a Russian and Dutch translation
of Plumier's work in 1716. He was very interested in utilizing the
mechanical arts to Westernize his country and was an accomplished
ornamental turner. Boxes and a pair of compasses in an ivory box made
by him are in the Brandenberg Museum in Copenhagen today. Boxes made
by the Prussian kings, Frederick III and Frederick IV, are also at
this museum.
Andrei Konstantinovich Nartov, a member of Peter the Great's court
wrote a treatise called "Theatrum Machinarum" (see Bibliography)
which was never published, but nevertheless was preserved in manuscript
form and translated in 1966 by the Israel Program for Scientific Translations
in Jerusalem. Nartov was a mechanic and state counselor to Peter and
a member of the Imperial Academy of Sciences. He was sent by Peter
in 1718 to instruct Frederick William I, king of Prussia, in the art
of ornamental turnery. As Frank Knox recounts, "Another of Nartov's
lathes, made in Moscow and brought to Paris, was presented to Louis
XV with a collection of turned objects that were placed in the Louvre
and are still kept, together with the lathe, in the Musé e du
Conservatoire National des Arts et Metié rs." Nartov was apparently
a master of the craft and produced complicated shapes with delicate
workmanship. Another of his lathes was presented by the Czar Nicholas
I to the Austrian emperor Ferdinand,and it is now located in the Technical
Museum of Vienna.
The Zick family, who lived in Nuremberg in the 16th and 17th centuries,
produced many of the exotic and seemingly impossible pieces seen in
museums today. Other European members of royalty were ornamental turners
and some of their work survives today. The Copenhagen Museum has in
its collections objects made by Christian V and Frederick IV, Kings
of Denmark. Both the kings, Louis XV and XVI of France, were ornamental
turners and collectors. A daughter of George II of England, Princess
Louise, produced a complex pyramid. At Augsburg are the pieces of
Tabien Treffler, who also taught ornamental turnery to German royalty.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, a goodly number of ornamental lathes
were made in Europe and found their way into the hands of many houses
of European royalty, where both men and women practiced the craft
as a hobby. In this age of fascination with mechanical devices, some
very elaborate ornamental turning was created and some still survives
in the museums of Europe.
| CONTENTS |
A Modern Ornamental Lathe
In a 1976 issue of Fine Woodworking (see
Bibliography) magazine, Ray Lawler first read of a machine and
a craft he had never encountered before. He found the article about
Frank Knox (see Bibliography), his
Holtzapffel lathe, and the exquisite ornamental turnings he produced
fascinating. Being the owner of a custom gear-making shop, Ray had
the facilities and the interest to attempt to make a modern version
of a Holtzapffel ornamental turning lathe. He got in touch with Frank
Knox and found out about the five books the Holtzapffels had written
on the lathe and turning techniques. Though the books contained very
good and clear drawings of lathes and apparatus, not one dimension
was mentioned. So Lawler went to New York and spent two days with
Mr. Knox with a camera and micrometer, taking measurements and pictures
of the Holtzapffel lathe owned by Mr. Knox. As a result, in 1985,
Ray and his dad, Calvin, created a prototype lathe.
As expressed by V. E. Gilmore in a 1989 Popular Science
(see Bibliography) article, speaking
of the Lawler lathe, "It is a beautiful
machine, made of polished steel, cast bronze, and mounted on mahogany
legs....(it) embodies several design changes. Of course it is motorized
rather than having a treadle as the old ones originally did. It is
also larger; it can hold work up to 36 inches long (compared with
about 22 inches for a Holtzapffel lathe)."
Lawler made his lead screw run the length of the lathe, rather than
the 8" of the original Holtz, to allow for the continuous working
of longer pieces of wood. This change caused a problem with the overhead
drive that powers the cutters since there is greater movement longitudinally
than with a Holtzapffel lathe. His solution as described by Gilmore
was "to add a vertical upright to the back of the slide rest, which
moves in tandem with the tool holder. The pulley on the horizontal
crossbar atop the upright thus can be always above the cutter. A counterweight
on the main upright keeps the belt in proper tension." This example
is but one of many elegant solutions to making a workable machine
with modern technology. Another Lawler innovation was to mount the
tool carriage on linear bearings which give a silky, smooth motion
to the carriage as it moves along the lathe bed.
With such refinements as mentioned above, the Lawlers have now produced
and sold 36 lathes (as of spring '96). There is not a great demand
for such exotic machinery, and the effort has not been profitable
for the Lawlers, and they have ceased production or support of their
OT lathes.
Another maker of modern ornamental wood turning lathes is Paul Cler.
He has made about 10 lathes, and they have rose engine capabilities
as well as spiral, reciprocator and indexed work capabilities. His
lathes are smaller than the Lawler and considerably less expensive.
They have been quite well received by the OT community and there is
a wait list for his latest production. They incorporate many ingenious
methods of accomplishing OT tasks and Paul is quite an original thinker
with a profound mechanical aptitude. Another consummate machinist
is Fred Armbruster. Fred has made two immaculate rose engine lathes
styled after the finest Holtzapffel model. Fred also makes beautifully
designed and crafted cutting frames and other ornamental turning apparatus.
These modern ornamental turning lathes and apparatus have contributed
considerably to the renewed interest shown in this archaic craft.
| CONTENTS |
The State of the Craft
Ornamental turning reached its previous crest of interest immediately
preceding World War I. The disruption of European society wrought
by the war spelled a demise of interest in OT. Not only was the aristocracy
of Europe greatly reduced, but machinist's work on electrically powered
tools became the popular hobby of the mechanically inclined.
In 1948, however, a dedicated group of amateurs formed the Society
of Ornamental Turners in England. This group served as a focus for
a renewed interest in the tools and techniques of ornamental turning.
Public awareness was aroused by their Bulletin and meetings and competitions.
In the US, a magazine article in 1976 first brought awareness of ornamental
turning to a broader audience. Then the reprints of Holtzapffel's
books and later those of Evans and Lukin gave a resource of historical
information to those interested. Likely the most impact on US awareness
of ornamental turning was brought by the publication of the beautiful
little book by Frank Knox in 1986. Even though the book was short,
his beautiful designs and workmanship depicted by excellent color
photographs and information about the history and techniques of OT
served as a valuable modern introduction to the craft. In 1990, an
excellent book on OT published in England by TD Walshaw served to
provide further information to those intrigued by this craft. The
Bibliography contains information about all
these written works and more dealing with ornamental turning.
Today, the Society of Ornamental Turners numbers over 300 members
worldwide. The American Association of Woodturners, with a membership
exceeding 5000, has as a local chapter the Ornamental Turners of America.
They hold yearly conferences which have a section dedicated to ornamental
turning. In 1995 The Ornamental Turners International was organized
to serve as a focus for ornamental turning in the US. It holds an
annual meeting, and is making provisions for the reprinting of rare,
out-of-print books on OT, the group purchase of OT equipment and materials,
and a means of networking by sharing a newsletter. (See the Bibliography,
Other Sources of Information, for
further information about these groups.)
There are excellent displays of ornamental turning equipment at the
British Science Museum in London. At the Rochester Institute of Technology
in Rochester N.Y., site of a 1992 Ornamental Turning Seminar, there
has been an organized program of instruction in ornamental turning
with the tools and equipment donated by Frank Knox's estate. The HaWK
computerized ornamental turning lathe created by Mark Krick and associates
utilizes the latest electronic technology in their experiments with
computer-controlled OT.
Around the world, a group of talented amateurs and professionals
carry on the traditions of ornamental turning, infusing new materials,
techniques and designs into the craft. Work such as mine, I think,
demonstrates that you do not have to have an ornamental turning lathe
to produce respectable ornamental turning. Excellent ornamental turning
can be performed on machinery adapted to the purpose. Such talented
professionals as Paul Fletcher (see Bibliography,
"Craft Crusader") in England and Jon Sauer
(see Bibliography) and Dale
Chase in California have gained international reputations in the
art world for their work. Exhibitions held by major galleries such
as the Del Mano Gallery in Los
Angeles now include work by ornamental turners. With the reprinting
by modern publishers of some of the classic works of ornamental turning,
with the encouragement of several organizations formed to foster the
craft, with the introduction of a modern ornamental turning lathe,
and with the ingenuity and creativity of resourceful individuals to
create their own apparatus, this venerable craft has gained the momentum
and interest to propel it, alive and well, into a new century to assume
its rightful place in the field of the decorative arts.
|
|
|