2020 Essays
Casting in Frames
The making of portrait medals and the proliferation of “books of secrets” in sixteenth-century Europe form an important historical context for “Casting in frames” on fol. 118v. This entry contains detailed instructions for making “sand” for molding and casting a portrait medal. This essay reconstructs the making and casting of a sand mold (with productive failures), and compares Ms. Fr. 640 to contemporaneous texts containing similar techniques, such as Vannoccio Biringuccio's Pirotechnia (1540) and the Secreti del Reverendo Donno Alessio Piemontese (first printed 1555).
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More About This Work
- Academic Units
- Center for Science and Society
- The Making and Knowing Project
- Series
- Secrets of Craft and Nature
- Published Here
- July 23, 2026
