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I'm not so sure the sub-millimeter details are so mysterious if a sub-millimeter mark in hard stone is easy to feel with the fingers. And if that's how they di
by crawfordcomeaux 5y ago
I'm not so sure the sub-millimeter details are so mysterious if a sub-millimeter mark in hard stone is easy to feel with the fingers.
And if that's how they did it, this is still remarkable work.
- coderaptor 5y agoDo we have evidence it was carved? It’s possible to “shrink” a stamp by pressing onto wet clay, firing, and then repeating the process multiple times (clay will reduce after firing). I wonder if this could have been etched or pressed, potentially with a chemical process?
- irrational 5y agoApparently the stone is very hard and difficult to carve. Presumably this would mean it wasn't pressed in some manner.
- cossatot 5y agoAgate is silica (quartz) and is harder than steel, or any common metal or alloy that pre-modern people would have had. A few common minerals are harder, such as feldspar and hornblende, and modern ceramic is (but not all fired clay). I think tools made or tipped with these must have been used, and/or perhaps finely ground minerals were used as an abrasive polish.