gems, glyptic, engraved gems, agate, cameo, intaglio

Sinkankas: The first chapter is a fascinating account of how the author became interested in engraved gems and how, by taking lessons and guidance from Ottavio Negri, her mentor (and dedicatee), she mastered the necessary skills to become herself a gem engraver of high repute. The other chapters describe the development of gem engraving and the works of gem engravers from antiquity to the present. The first appendix lists the tools and techniques employed in gem engraving, but is far too short to be useful to one who wishes to learn how—which is a pity, considering that the history of gem engraving, which occupies most of the text space, is readily discovered in many other works on the subject or in modern encyclopedias, but specific hints, tips, and practices such as Sutherland must have mastered are not. Another appendix lists and briefly describes various mineral and organic materials with hardnesses. The synoptic calendar summarizes important developments in the span of gem engraving history. The photographs are mostly of engraved gems, many of the author’s, as are some of the line drawings, but the latter also include some depictions of tools and equipment based on illustrations in Natter’s A Treatise on the Ancient Method of Engraving on Precious Stones (1754), which see. By 1976 this work was out of print. See Rev G & F, 1965, 287.