145v - - - - - [continued]
But with fingers you cannot press evenly, because if you press on the edges, the middle will remain hollow. Start therefore with the middle, & then do the edges. But to do it better, put something flat & even on the medal, or some large square file, & press with that; because you will press evenly, sometimes with your knee, other times with your foot with your shoe taken off. & do it from above, so that you impress it without breaking it. If it is not well molded on the first go, do it again several times. Then restore and flatten your halves of molded bone from the sides. And to cut them well, always start from the most tractable part, coming out to the shell. And if your medal does not come out on its own, scratch the rough bone from behind and it will strip. When you want to cast, settle & affix the two bones with little pins of wood & in order to cast neatly, you have only to try it with sand.
Moulding herbs and flowers
You do not need thin sheets of clay, because the herbs and flowers will not lay on it, but as it were in the air, not touching anything from any side, so you only have need of a circle & contour that is higher than for flat molds. And in this way, take heed to make it strong and thick, with the heft that you find suitable. Otherwise, it will sink in when the sand is inside. Fix & fortify it well with your foot & firmly attach all the joints. Then, have your flower well attached & assuredly fixed to the bottom of the casting with wax that is not at all rough, but smooth, so that it can strip off well. Then moisten your flower or herb in good spirits in a tall glass.
at left top margin
** Flowers **
+ When you mold them, if they are not strong enough to hold themselves upright, run a thread through the mold to keep them lest they do not hoist themselves up. & cast the sand little by little & continuously and blow on it strongly and constantly so that it covers everywhere. Otherwise, it will become lumpy. Since you won’t put anything in thin sheets of clay, the mold sometimes sticks to the table on which you mold. To release it, strike a great blow on the side of the table with a hammer.
Figure at left bottom margin
at left bottom margin
It’s enough to reheat your clayed mold once for flowers & to heat it the second time if you cast in tin & lead, in so much as for gold & silver, you have to reheat it twice.
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When very red, cast your tin into the mold when it is so hot that you cannot? hold your finger in the hole without .
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