Obelisk
A tall, tapering, four-sided monolithic monument terminating in a pyramidal top.
Stone Carving
Polishing
The progressive refinement of a stone surface with increasingly fine abrasives until the desired sheen is reached.
Quarry
The working from which natural stone is extracted—and, for the sculptor, the first workshop in the life of a stone sculpture, where geology, orientation, block size, soundness, provenance, procurement, and communication begin to determine the work.
Stone Selection
The evaluation of a stone before carving for soundness, grain, bedding, veining, fissures, inclusions, color, weather resistance, dimensions, and suitability for the intended form.
Crepidoma
The crepidoma — the Greek temple's stepped platform, rising from stereobate to stylobate — is the direct architectural ancestor of every classical statue base and pedestal.
Débit
In stone work, débit refers to the cutting or division of stone into usable blocks, slabs, or pieces.
Capital
The capital — Latin for "little head" — is the column's crowning member and, from Corinthian acanthus to the historiated capitals of Vézelay and Autun, the stone carver's principal architectural canvas.
Cartouche
The cartouche — literally a "roll of paper" rendered permanent in stone — is the carved frame that holds a facade's inscriptions, arms, and epitaphs.
Cassolette
The cassolette — a pierced ornamental incense-vase — is Neoclassical French sculpture's carved emblem of offering and mourning.