Busacca Gallery

Alabaster hand carved antique black open bowl vase This alabaster bowl is made by hand using hand tools, and very possibly was made in the alabaster shops of Italy. The Italians hand carve these fine bowls using traditional tools. Therefore, no two are exactly alike, and the colors of these bowls can vary from lighter to darker.Hand made alabaster products are almost always much thinner, finer pieces that are more translucent than machine made alabaster. Its finish is also much less polished than machined alabaster. Obviously, the handmade products are also more sought after. This is a handmade bowl that is, while not a museum replica, perhaps not unlike some carved by the ancient Romans and the Egyptians thousands of years ago. Please note: Water will damage hand carved alabaster items.

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabaster

Alabaster (sometimes called satin spar) is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals: gypsum (a hydrous sulfate of calcium) and calcite (a carbonate of calcium). The former is the alabaster of the present day; the latter is generally the alabaster of the ancients.

The two kinds are readily distinguished from each other by their relative hardnesses. The gypsum kind is so soft as to be readily scratched by a finger-nail while the calcite kind is too hard to be scratched in this way, though it does yield readily to a knife. Alabaster, In the 15th century it's carving into icons and altarpieces was a valuable local industry throe out Europe. The finer kinds of alabaster are largely employed as an ornamental stone, especially for ecclesiastical decoration and for the rails of staircases and halls. Its softness enables it to be readily carved into elaborate forms, but its solubility in water renders it inapplicable to outdoor work. The purest alabaster is a snow-white material of fine tiniforni grain.