Baroque and rococo carvings

[vacca rabite]

I'm starting to sketch out the relief carving ideas on the butt of my rifle, and trying to get as many pictures and ideas as is possible.

Is there a website that has a bunch of pictures (or patterns) of the baroque/rococo relief carvings?

I'm sure my office-mates are wondering WTH I am doing drawing tons of curls and swirls in my notebook.

Thanks all!
Zach

 

[Birddog6]

Don't know of a site that does. Most use MANY books, learn & get ideas & practice drawing from what is in the books.

Keith Lisle

 

[Lock Nut]

Rifles of Colonial America Vol. 1 & 2 are good books to study relief carving. They are full of detailed pics of actual rifles from various schools.

 

[jerrywh]

The carving on American long rifles is a poor example of rococo or baroque. It's more like folk art. Look for auction catalogs of 18th century European or French furniture. Also look up Rococo decorative art on the web. Dover publications has some books on rococo and baroque.

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
Simply go online and search in Google images for rococo and baroque carving. You will find a lot.

dave

 

[galamb]

If you are simply going for "decoration" it won't matter which style you choose or even if you mix/match.

If you are trying to keep your rifle period correct, make sure you get it right though.

Baroque would be correct on a very early rifle.

Rococo was beginning to emerge by the 1730's and was fairly widely accepted by the 1750's.

So Baroque would look very "out of place" on a Golden Age rifle if you were trying to make it look somewhat "original".

 

[Eric Krewson]

I am artistically challenged and am surprised that there are no rifle carving patterns out there that are of an overlay type with cutouts so you could lay one on the stock and draw the carvings basic shape through the pattern.

Pretty sure I can do the carving but the layout is my stumbling block.

 

[Col. Batguano]

How is that gun coming that you teased us with the engraving of the butt plate and lock screw with about a year ago? You said the barrel was going to get about 1000 hours worth of your master engraver touch. I can't wait.

 

[Spikebuck]

Susanne Warren-Bicio has published "The Book of Lancaster - Carving Details for the Gunmaker" which is a collection of full sized carvings of original longrifles and it's sorted by original gunmaker name. One can copy the pages and use them as templates.
http://www.historicalarmsmaker.com/publications.html

Review from Bill Scurlock: I reviewed The Book of Lancaster: Carving Details for the Gunmaker by Susanne Warren-Bicio in the September/October issue. It's an excellent book of 68 detailed drawings by Susanne of the carving on a number of original Lancaster rifles. These drawings can be of greater value than many of the photos that have been published of these rifles because many of the details cannot be seen in the photos.

You can contact Susanne at www.historicalarmsmaker.com.

Bill Scurlock

 

[vacca rabite]

That. Is. Perfect.
I'll be ordering a copy today.
This rifle kit needs to get to me. I keep buying stuff for a rifle I don't even have yet

 

[vacca rabite]

Google image search is what I have been doing. Lots of ideas have started to flow from there to my sketchbook.
Zach

 

[Spikebuck]

Another idea is to buy access to Track of the Wolf's Historical Archives. This basically gives you access to all the pictures of all the guns they have sold, which of course include a high percentage of custom guns. Costs $4.99 for a month of access.
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/0/1/ARCHIVE-TRACK

 

[user 922]

I wouldn't rely too heavily on TOW's archives if you are looking for accuracy. Some of the known makers' work they have sold are pretty true to "school" but many are laughably inaccurate (as are their descriptions). If you don't know what's right and what isn't you are not going to learn much from that source. Stay with originals.

RCA and other good works are available (in PA, anyway) via inter-library loan.

 

[blackdog of vt]

I wouldn't rely too heavily on TOW's archives if you are looking for accuracy. Some of the known makers' work they have sold are pretty true to "school" but many are laughably inaccurate (as are their descriptions). If you don't know what's right and what isn't you are not going to learn much from that source. Stay with originals.

RCA and other good works are available (in PA, anyway) via inter-library loan.

Spot on advice from Bucksco.

Its not just cut and dry as rococo or baroque. American rococo differs greatly from europe as it does in different regions there. These were both artist made and designed art so it evolved as such. Study the art and why it was done rather than just copying guns. That way you will get to understand the art and develop it your way. It is really easy to see when if the gunsmith understands or duplicates on contemporary work.