Ornamentation technique called damascene metal is of great antiquity, being the favorite decoration for weapons and armor from time immemorial. It basically consists of embedding a precious metal such as gold or 24K .925 fine silver thousandths other current metal such as steel, copper, iron, bronze, etc. This combination of different metals as a result provides a great beauty of real metal marquetry.
There are numerous examples in museums such as the Metropolitan of New York, the Army Museum and the Royal Armouries to the Royal Palace of Madrid … where we can find swords, armor, guns, saddles and so on of damask elements.
Being a form of oriental inspiration and craftsmanship behind the Arab presence in Spain for seven centuries, it is logical that this technique sink in deep among Spanish craftsmen, who learned and maintained until today, mainly in the city of Toledo, undoubtedly because of its ancient tradition of swordmaking, manufacture of armor and works on metal.
As in any creative process, the first step is to capture the idea on paper.
The artisan draws the motif to be used later on the metal piece to work.
Traditional Damascene crafts are mainly of two types.
One, known as Arabic, consisting of lines which draw intricate geometrical shapes,
inspired in the traditional ornamental style of that culture.
Other, called Renaissance, depicts leaves, flowers, birds and volutes.
First of all, the metallic piece to work is fixed with sealing wax to a tool called
since most of the ones used in the past were actual cannonballs.
These balas rotate freely on a wood triangle.
Second, after removing the grease from the surface of the metal,
numerous parallel cuts are made, using a warm, sharp blade.
The grooves will be filled with gold later.
18 and 24 carats gold are used in the Damasceno.
The designs and motifs from the original drawing are stamped on the metal sheets,
thus providing a regular balance of shapes and sizes to the Damascene.
Besides, a greater impression of depth, volume and contrast is achieved in the final picture,
due to the combination of green and yellow gold.
Once all the motifs are cut and ready, they are placed fixing them to the metal by heating softly.
Since gold is a malleable metal, it penetrates slightly in the grooves previously made.
But, to make the gold sheet or the gold thread penetrate thoroughly in the grooves made on the
steel, the traditional Damascene tool, called botador, has to be strongly heated.
After the gold is inlaid, the piece is submerged in a hot caustic solution,
to obtain a quick chemical rusting of the steel, giving the Damascene its characteristic velvety
black color. The last and perhaps most relevant step is known as repasado, review.
It will give the work its final appearance. The gold is burnished with polished shisos.
To finish the piece, it has to be cleaned with ordinary breadcrumbs,
until completely removed the last trace of oil.
This traditional process could not be replaced by any of the modern methods.
