Khatamkari

In inlaying technique different pieces of woods and bones are collected in different colors, and are precisely cut into pieces with the length of 30 cm and diameter of 1 to 5.2 mm to form triangles. In the next step the pieces are rasped in order to match all the sides with the pattern of the design. To do so metal wires in triangle shape are used. Further the design of the patterns will be drawn and the triangles, which were made out of wood, bone and metal will be placed side by side and glued wisely by the craftsman and will be fastened with thread. This will form “pare”. After a few hours, the threads will be untied and 4 of the “Pare” will be placed side by side and glued. This will result in forming “Toglo”. At the next step known as ” Gol Pichi” a round metal wire which has been made as a regular hexagon or “Shamse”,along each side six wires will be glued and fastened with thread, forming a star. These motifs will be repeated until the desired design is formed. Finally the inlaid design will be kept under pressure. The final piece might need several cutting and pasting of thin wood layers around the design, which will result in the initial design of an inlaid work. All these steps, from the beginning up to here include 400 steps.
Based on the design, color, shape and dimensions of the inlaid work, inlays are pasted on the article. After minor repairs, rasping, sanding the work will be grinded to have a smooth the surface. The work will be polished and oiled by special materials such as other sealer, Keeler and polyester. A more precise and delicate design is generally more valuable. The precision and the size of the chips express the value of the work. All these depend on the skill, the patience and the accuracy of the craftsman in preparing the raw materials and the way of using them.