Intarsia

Intarsia
This article is about the form of wood inlaying. For the

knitting technique, see Intarsia (knitting).
Intarsia is a form of wood inlaying that is similar to
The marble intarsia oor of St. Peters Basilica
Geometric gure (1537), intarsia by fra Damiano da Bergamo;

Museum of the Basilica of Saint Dominic, Bologna, Italy
marquetry. The term is also used for a similar technique

used with small, highly polished stones set in a marble
matrix (see pietre dure).
The technique of intarsia inlays sections of wood (at times

with contrasting ivory or bone, or mother-of-pearl) within
the solid stone matrix of oors and walls or of table
tops and other furniture; by contrast marquetry assembles a pattern out of veneers glued upon the carcase. It is
thought that the word 'intarsia' is derived from the Latin
word 'interserere' which means to insert.
before it was introduced into Christian Europe through

Sicily and Andalusia. The art was further developed in
Siena and by Sienese masters at the cathedral of Orvieto,
where gurative intarsia made their rst appearance, ca
1330 and continuing into the 15th century[2] and in northern Italy in the fteenth and sixteenth centuries, spreading to German centers and introduced into London by
Flemish craftsmen in the later sixteenth century. The
most elaborate examples of intarsia can be found in cabinets of this period, which were items of great luxury and
prestige.[3] After about 1620, marquetry tended to supplant intarsia in urbane cabinet work.
When Egypt came under Arab rule in the seventh century,

indigenous arts of intarsia and wood inlay, which lent
themselves to non-representational decors and tiling patterns, spread throughout the maghreb.[1] The technique
of intarsia was already perfected in Islamic North Africa
In the 1980s, intarsia began to gain popularity in the

United States as a technique for creating wooden art using a band saw or scroll saw.[4] Early practitioners made
money both by selling their art, and also selling patterns
used to create intarsia.[5]
History
REFERENCES
a feature of baroque interior design, particularly so in

the Sicilian Baroque designs following the earthquake of
1693.
Today intarsia can be made from purchased patterns. To
make intarsia from a pattern, rst wood is chosen based
on color and grain pattern. Next the pattern is transferred
onto the wood and individual pieces are precisely cut out
on the band saw or scroll saw. Those pieces are then
sanded individually or in groups to add depth to the piece.
Once the sanding is completed, the wood pieces are tted together to form the nal result. A nish (for example
a clear gel stain) can be applied to the individual pieces
before gluing, or to the glued nal version.[6]
3 See also
Cosmatesque
Cosmati
Duomo di Siena
Modern intarsia using natural wood grains and colors
Lathart
Pietra dura
Process
Intarsia is a woodworking technique that uses varied

shapes, sizes, and species of wood tted together to create a mosaic-like picture with an illusion of depth. Intarsia is created through the selection of dierent types
of wood, using their natural grain pattern and color (but
can involve the use of stains and dyes) to create variations in the pattern. After selecting the specic woods
to be used within the pattern, each piece is then individually cut, shaped, and nished. Sometimes areas of the
pattern are raised to create more depth. Once the individual pieces are complete, they are tted together like a
jig-saw puzzle and glued to wood backing which is sometimes cut to the outline shape of the image, often with the
intention of creating a three-dimensional eect as seen in
the studiolo of the Palazzo Ducale, Urbino.
Marble intarsia (opere di commessi), called pietre dura
in English for the semi-precious hardstones combined
with colored marbles that are employed, is an intarsia of
coloured stones inlaid in white or black marble. Early
examples in Florence date from the mid fteenth century and reached a peak of renement and complexity in
revetments of the Medici Chapel, produced under Medici
patronage in the Opicio delle Pietre Dure, which was established by Ferdinando I de Medici. Later complex designs and renement of the art developed in Naples circa
the beginning of the 17th century. The oor of St. Peters Basilica in Rome is a particularly notable example
of marble intarsia. Later this form of decoration became
4 References
[1] MS Dimand, An Egypto-Arabic Panel with Mosaic Decoration The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 33.3
(March 1938:78-79)
[2] Antoine Wilmering, Domenico di Niccol, Mattia di
Nanni and the Development of Sienese Intarsia Techniques Domenico di Niccol, Mattia di Nanni and the Development of Sienese Intarsia Techniques, The Burlington Magazine 139 No. 1131 (June 1997:376-97).
[3] ngeles Jordano, The Plus Oultra Writing Cabinet of
Charles V: Expression of the Sacred Imperialism of the
Austrias, Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies 9
(2011:14-26), doi:10.5334/jcms.91105.
[4] Judy Gale Roberts, Intarsia Queen. Retrieved 21 April
2015.
[5] Judy Gale Roberts, Intarsia Queen. Retrieved 21 April
2015.
[6] Intarsia, How to Do it. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
Opicio delle Pietre Dure, Florence, an institute of

the Ministry for Cultural Heritage
Jackson, F. Hamilton, Intarsia and Marquetry,
(London: Sands & Co.) 1903 excerpt
External links
Scrollsaw Association of the World website
The Gubbio Studiolo and its conservation, volumes
1 & 2, from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on intarsia (see index)
6 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES
Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses
6.1
Text
Intarsia Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intarsia?oldid=676152671 Contributors: Radioheadmilk, Charles Matthews, Wetman,

Francisu, JoJan, Xezbeth, Marcok, Acjelen, Railgun, TheParanoidOne, Giano, Carioca, Ghirlandajo, Jemiller226, Rjwilmsi, FlaBot, Eubot,
Loggie, Wavelength, Grafen, Wknight94, Attilios, Bluebot, Thumperward, MalafayaBot, KaiserbBot, SashatoBot, Tawkerbot2, Roberta F.,
JAnDbot, The Transhumanist, MarkTwainOnIce, Johnbod, STBotD, TXiKiBoT, Slysplace, Broadbot, DesmondW, Andy Dingley, Hburdon, Lathart, Addbot, MrOllie, Tassedethe, Lightbot, Intarsiatori, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Pkravchenko, Anna Frodesiak, LucienBOT, Ursulla
Pulp, NarSakSasLee, TheRawket, EmausBot, Ernie03, Jbribeiro1, Dominikmatus, Briankh, WilliamDigiCol, SJ Defender, Connaught4,
KasparBot, ScottAnthonyRoss and Anonymous: 19
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File:Cougar_example_of_modern_intarsia.jpg Source:
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I created the Intarsia myself and photographed it.
Original artist:
ScottAnthonyRoss
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What is intarsia and how is it made?

What is intarsia and how is it made?

What are some notable examples of intarsia?

What are some notable examples of intarsia?

Intarsia

This article is about the form of wood inlaying. For the

The marble intarsia oor of St. Peters Basilica

Geometric gure (1537), intarsia by fra Damiano da Bergamo;

marquetry. The term is also used for a similar technique

The technique of intarsia inlays sections of wood (at times

before it was introduced into Christian Europe through

When Egypt came under Arab rule in the seventh century,

In the 1980s, intarsia began to gain popularity in the

a feature of baroque interior design, particularly so in

Intarsia is a woodworking technique that uses varied

Opicio delle Pietre Dure, Florence, an institute of

6 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

Intarsia Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intarsia?oldid=676152671 Contributors: Radioheadmilk, Charles Matthews, Wetman,

File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original

File:Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/48/Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg License: Cc-bysa-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0

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