<title id=“p015r_a2”>Casting Metals</title>

<ab id=“p015r_b2”>Candlesticks and small works are cast in a box mold with sand.Having stamped the work, sprinkle it with flour in order to make the copper or latten run better. When the sand has been in use for one month, it is necessary to take some new [sand] because that which has been used, being cooked again+, dries & loses its bond. Yet it is used mixed with the new [sand], because it makes the work less porous. Large works such as artillery, bells and similar things are cast in earth, and copper cast in earth makes less crust and is whiter than when cast in sand. The earth is sandy clay mixed with horse dung and cloth waste. The earth that has been used for casting, which is black, baked and as if burnt, is mixed with artificial sand, and is very good. For softening and making the copper run, once it is melted, one throws in some lead, which does not form an alloy but is found on the surface of the cast.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fols. 68r-69r - "Casting"

fol. 68r
Casting</title>

<ab id=”p068r_b3a”>I have tried four kinds of sand for lead and tin: chalk, crushed glass, tripoli and burnt linen, all four are excellent. As to the chalk, it needs to be of the softest kind available, like the Champagne chalk used by painters. It releases very cleanly, needs not be dampened with magistry or with anything else, but is used in its natural dry state and finely pulverized. The first cast is always cleaner, however it will sustain two or three castings. Should you only cast once, keep in mind, while remaking your box mold, to take powdered chalk that has not yet been used, since the one previously used in the box has dried out and will not bind and hold together as well as fresh chalk. Crushed glass can be made from ordinary glass sand, however cristallo glass is more excellent, because common glass contains saltwort only, while cristallo glass contains both salt of tartar and saltwort. Both of them help the fusion, during which the glass is calcinated and reduced to its prime matter. In order to calcinate it perfectly, throw your pieces of glass, of whichever sort, among the largest possible glowing coals, unless some other violent heat source is available. And once the glass is red hot, throw it into water.

<note id=”p068r_c3”>Putty is considered excellent for these two metals.</note>

fol. 68v
and soon you will crumble it between your fingers, then it is easily crushed in a metal mortar, or better in an iron mortar. Then it will be easy to grind it on the porphyry, and not on the common marble slab which would corrode it. You must grind it with water very smoothly, then put it on your nail it should be very soft without any ruggedness, like the colors ground by the painters for use with oil of […] When dry, use it for box mold, instead of sand, without wetting it or even reheating if you do not want to. Spread on the pipe smoke of sulphur, or some smoke from the top of the beeswax candle which does not make a lot of smoke. Your work in pure lead and tin will be clean, as tripoli stone sofly pulverized which is not softened. Burned cloth is easier to use than the other because it does not need to be reheated nor softened. It mold and can be removed very cleanly from the mold, as the above, and it should enable several fusions. First of all burn it on a flame, then let it burning over this heat, until […] Then grind it on the marble slab or between a sheet of paper. Reheat it in a reddened crucible in order to make a powder as fine as possible. I think it would be much better. When you burn cloth it makes very little powder, so if you want to spare your powder, only cover the medal you want to mold, and fill the box mold with crushed slate which also mold very clean. However note that the first cast is the most beautiful and the cleanest. Soft tin which seems to be burnished, which is sold by the .. mold very clean, and looks like silver color without mixing anything to it. It is true that you must cast very hot and the molded object must be 4 fingers far from the cast. In order to know it’s heat, first of all melt it very hot, then put inside the cast a piece of paper or a straw which should simmer, then take it off the fire, let it rest, and cast. Mix tin </ab>

fol. 69r
<ab id=”p068r_b3c”>with half lead works almost better than tin or pure lead, even though in any case they work well. Nevertheless heed that you cast lead not nearly as hot as tin. In big works it is necessary to wet the sands with magistra or egg white.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 69r - "Joiner; Sand"

<title id=”p069r_a1”>Joiner</title>

<ab id=”p069r_b1”>Three things take the longest, leaves, hair and garlands.</ab>

<title id=”p069r_a2”>Sand</title>
<ab id=”p069r_b2a”>For a cast, do not choose that [sand] that is in any way lean & arid, such that it does not bind at all, like that from the sea or from sandy roads dried out by the sun. But choose preferably that from quarries or rock caves, since that one is best, as long as it is very fine. You will know the vein if, in the greyish rocks or quarries that seem to be made of sand, after rainy weather, you see certain little heaps like dust attached to the said rocks, or if the humidity causes them to shed stones that crumble easily between your hands. You will also find sand in lean soils, which comes off in large lumps like tuf stones, or in boulbène soils, which sands are much better than those from fat and strong soils. And do not take it from the surface, lest it be mixed with common soil, but three or 4 feet below and closest to the tuf or stone. When it comes off in large lumps it appears to have started to form itself into stone, but once wet it comes apart easily. When breaking it up, make sure that it is quite granular and that in crushing it between the fingers, it becomes really very fine, keeping nevertheless its sandy asperity, without muddying the fingers like clay. One dries it slowly on the fire, then pounds it and passes it finely through a double sieve or a linen sleeve, then wets it with wine or magistra etc. / Green</ab>

<note id=“p069r_c2a”>The Toulouse molder reheats it strongly then grinds it finely on a marble slab and passes it through linen and wets it with wine. He makes the cast very large and flat and hardly deep. He casts pure brass for scales and similarly thin objects. He casts very hot.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 71v - "Sand"

<title id=”p071v_a4”>Sand</title>

<ab id=”p071v_b4a”>The powder of the millstone is very good for casting in copper. But do not use that of the cutlers,because it’s just mud, but rather that of those who mold giant shears.</ab>

<ab id=”p071v_b4b”>Filières’ Stones from, when smoothed by those who whet [blades], mold really neatly when scraped for lead. This [stone] is usually slate-colored. It is carried frequently from Carcassonne to Toulouse.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 72v - "Casting"

<title id=“p072v_a1”>Casting</title>
<ab id=“p072v_b1a”>Lead, which is soft and heavy, wants to be cast much hotter than tin. When it is not hot enough, it makes lines in the medal. Straw burns in it, if it is hot [enough]. It makes a solder so soft and runny that it can be melted in a tin dish. It is composed of one part out of looking glass tin, of one part out of soft tin, and another part of lead. It [the solder] runs very cleanly and casts in sheets, but the work is very rough and breaks. The best solder, for casting well, is the common one, but it leaves certain rough crumbs. Combine lead with tin so that the ingot that you are going to cast becomes smooth and lustrous and polished, and doesn’t make any “eyes” or bubbles except for a small point in the middle. And this sign will tell you that there is enough tin, otherwise the lead dominates too much. The sand is good for lead and tin. The good [sand] is well dried and fine and thin, however make it as fine as possible. The sand wants to be recooked rather than put to work [directly]. And to mold with it, it wants to be well dampened and then recooked, not all at once nor under a lot of pressure, because this spoils it, and makes it shrink and also makes it crumble. But if you reheat it, and take your time, it will make it very firm, to be good for molding. It is necessary to filter it through a shirt sleeve in order to make it the more fine, with the aim of putting it first on the piece to be cast.</ab>
<ab id=“p072v_b1b”>One makes a solder with quicksilver that is white, but it is thick. Make sure your boxis joined well and that one does not see any daylight between the joints.</ab>
<ab id= “p072v_b1c”>The Germans cast lead very thinly, because they think it is better than very thick, but as it is too pliable, it is so thin they mix a little tin with the aforementioned lead which, otherwise, would fold like wax.</ab>
<ab id=“p072v_b1d”>Some say the blackest lead is the best and the softest and flows the best. You recognize the goodness of it by rubbing it with your finger, which will blacken immediately.</ab>
<ab id=“p072v_b1e”>The good alloy for the flow of lead and tin is [made] from one lb of lead, and one and a half lb of tin. It is solder which flows well that is good for casting, but it is rough.</ab>
<note id= p072v_c1a”>To make the lead flow well, mix in a little quicksilver.</note>
<note id=“p072v_c1b”>Rub a cuttlefish bone on a table in order to make it flat and one against the other and against the two bones with pegs to keep them in place.</note>
<note id=“p072v_c1c”>Cuttlefish bone molds lead better than [any]thing there is, but try to see if it needs to be recooked. One must mold the back of the bones and along the side of them because the marrow there is more delicate.</note>
<note id=“p072v_c1d”>The marrow near the mouth is more delicate and does have not as many fibers and molds more cleanly. The shell which has the marrow [which] is calcinated is good for making sand.</note>
<note id=”p072v_c1e”>When you cast lead, you must cast it somewhat hot, and not at once and shake your frame and cast two or three times. However, if it is too hot, cast it, it will cast swollen and with bubbles. When it is very hot, it becomes blue; leave it then until the color passes and let it rest a little before casting.</note>
<note id=“p072v_c1f”>Some, such as printers, mix iron filings or pins with lead in order to render it hard. But this makes it rough and it breaks under a hammer.</note>
<note id=“p072v_c1g”>Have a scrubbrush for cleaning your molds.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 81r - "Sand; Earth for Moulding"

<title id=“p081r_a1”>Sand</title>

<ab id=“p081r_b1”>You can find some excellent [sand] for use with lead, tin and copper close to the hill of Pech-David, close to Toulouse. It should not be reheated much because drying out suddenly, it will lose its binding [properties] and retract [?] at the first inflow of metal, which makes the work become rough and unclean. It is much better to reheat it from a distance, instead of with a straw flame, which generates grime. Instead of filling the frame, you can use finer sand which you will have in a very thin cloth, and polish your medal and then the wet sand that you will put over it, which has more body, will grip it.</ab>

<note id=“p081r_c1a”>Tallow makes things fill with bubbles</note>

<note id=“p081r_c1b”>Mercury stops the burning when one wants to cast. Allow the lead to flow, but if it is pure, you have to cast it quite hot so it flows and vents.</note>

<title id=“p081r_a2”>Earth for moulding</title>

<ab id=“p081r_b2”>Sheath maker’s earth or the one pottersuse to blanche the pots to make the lead flow better on it and to prevent the lead from soaking into them is very good to cast the hollow parts of what you want in relief. It releases better than plaster or sulphur which become hard once they have grasped on [to the mould] because earth sticks. It must be hit very hard so that it does not break. If the piece you want to mould is very large you can mould different parts separately. If you reheat it, it must be over a closed fire. You can find this earth at Le Fousseret, and in another place called Ox.</ab>

<title id=”p081r_a3”>Plaster</title>

<ab id=”p081r_b3”>It must be very well cooked, you will come to learn when cooking it in an iron or metal casket. Mix it with an iron rod and if it sticks to the iron, it is not cooked enough, and if it doesn’t then it is ready. The water with which you soak it has to be a little warm and the mould of the above mentioned earth or other, also should be a little hot. The plaster work does not last and the faces and delicate things break if you do not use glue.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 81v - "Sand; Make copper and latten flow; Sand; Cast of the frame"

title id=”p081v_a1”>Sand</title>

<ab id=”p081v_b1”>Brick alone, quite finely sifted, and rubbed together, is good for casting lead and copper, when diluted with urine. This whitish brick should be used.</ab>
<title id=”p081v_a2”>Make copper and latten flow</title>

<ab id=”p081v_b2”>At the end of the casting, as it is very hot, add some salt ammicke and saltpetre, it is a way to remove grime. Mix some clay with the latten. The metal must not touch the iron or the latten of the frame, but covered with sand or clay, it makes a very homogeneous cast.</ab>

<title id=”p081v_a3”>Sand</title>

<ab id=”p081v_b3a”>Calcined black pebbles from the river are good [to use] for lead. But they are weakened if used with metal.</ab>

<ab id=”p081v_b3b”>There is only ardille clay with which onecan make tiles, recooked and reddened and passed through a long narrow bag carefully soaked with raw egg white.</ab>

<ab id=”p081v_b3c”>Willow charcoal is excellent with sand [and] lead.</ab>

<ab id=”p081v_b3d”>Latten flows better.</ab>

<title id=”p081v_a4”>Cast of the frame</title>

<ab id=”p081v_b4”>It is good to make it with bow wood. Turn it in order to make it homogeneous, as that is important for the casting. Cover the mouth of the frame with clay or sand, so that the molten metal, copper or lead, do not touch at all the iron or latten of the frame, because it would turn it sour, and make it filled with bubbles. Always cast higher than the mold. Pay attention that the cast is not too wide or too deep because the narrowest is the best one. Because when it is large, the weight of the matter which runs breaks and spreads the mold and fills the matter with bubbles. When you have casted, gently hit your frame, so that the matter spreads better. Black lead [de saulmon] of the first melting, works very neatly.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 82r - "Copper heat; Box mold; Egg White"

<title id=“p082r_a1”>Copper heat</title>

<ab id=“p082r_b1”>It is hot enough when you see it [is] clean and smooth on top of its impurity.</ab>
<title id=“p082r_a2”>Box mold</title>

<ab id=“p082r_b2”>Iron and copper swell if the metal touches it [the box mold], and the wood warps. Thus, make a mold from wood, and [then] make the box molds from bricks in this mold [the wooden mold] of the thickness that you will want.</ab>

<title id=“p082r_a3”>Egg white</title>

<ab id=“p082r_b3”>Egg white gives strength to sand so that many casts [can be] made from it</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr 640 fol. 82v - "Casting lead in lead; Sand; Casting Bronze"

<title id=”p082v_a2”>Casting lead in lead</title>

<ab id=”p082v_b2a”>Some make their lead water thick then they cast lead there.</ab>

<ab id=”p082v_b2b”>Lead that is not cast hot enough is white. It is darker when it is cast very hot.</ab>

<note id=”p082v_c2”>[translation missing]</note>

<title id=”p082v_a3”>Sand</title>

<ab id=”p082v_b3”>If sand is too fat it should be reheated and sifted again.</ab>

<title id=”p082v_a4”>Casting bronze</title>

<ab id=”p082v_b4”>Latten ... that is very sour moulds cleaner than latten of cassor according to many people. All fine latten molds cleaner than red copper. If you want to cast something small. The secret is that you must cast the hottest possible so that the matter boils. You will know that it is quite hot when it smokes a lot and stirring it makes sparks. For heating well you should place your crucible at the bottom of the forging mill so that the bellows are placed in the medium, thus it heats better than on the grate. It is true that the crucible can easily break but you can lute it as founders do. It is necessary that you keep the coals [lit], which are between the bellows and the crucible. Cast all at once and not gradually otherwise the conduit will be stopped by the matter. It is better make a tube which could pour the cast into the medal. It is necessary that you stir the melted matter with a stick, so that the matter heats well at the bottom. Iron does nothing but turn the matter sour.</ab>

<note id=”p082v_c4a”>[translation missing]</note>
<note id=”p082v_c4b”>Place one large iron plate under your crucible, the plate will redden and this will maintain the heat under your crucible.</note>
<note id=”p082v_c4c”>The copper matter is good to cast, when the matter is broken it makes the long grains and not short grains, that shows that the matter is soft. The matter is composed half of fine latten and half of red copper. This long grain is called “longue tige” [long rod].</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 82v "Egg White"

<ab id=“p082r_b3”>Egg white gives strength to sand so that many casts [can be] made from it</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 83r "Sand for lead"

<ab id=”p083r_b1”>Recipe: [Take] grey soot from the silversmiths’ furnace, quick lime, and flour. Moisten according to [the rules of] the art, in the finest possible way you can.</ab>

<note id=”p083r_c1”>The locksmiths’ grey soot which is held in their forge is quite fine when ground. It molds and is removed very neatly.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 83r "Sand for copper medals"

<ab id=”p083r_b2”>Recipe: [Take] hat felt burnt on a covered fire, iron dross, and burnt bone, all of which you should grind very finely, crush and spray with water and salt. Make a paste of it, mold it, and wipe it with hay fire. These three pulverized sands, having been very well refined on the porphyry slab, mold very well and cast well. Know that separately each of them is quite good. Burnt felt molds well and is removed quite neatly.</ab>

<note id=”p083r_c2”>Plaster molds quite neatly but it swells. Bone does not have much body while iron dross does. Felt allows for an easy removal of the cast.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 83r "other sand"

<ab id=”p083r_b3”>[Take] charcoal made from vine shoots and clay earth, both well searced, and mix them with well-beaten egg white. Next calcinate it [the resulting paste] in the oven and to use it, dillute it in vinegar.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 83r "Excellent sand"

<ab id=”p083r_b6”>Burn alabaster in a crusol under charcoal fire until it turns into powder. Once [it is] cold, finely pulverise it through a sieve to make it impalpable. With a pound of alabaster, one should use an ounce of sal ammoniac. Mix well and incorporate everything together. Next, put it in a cave or a wet location. And with this paste, mold whatever you need and then dry the mold under a fire. While the sand is hot, you cast whatever metal you may like and your cast will be as neat as the principal. And the sand [will]always work if it is kept in a wet location and dried by the fire.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 84r "Magistry"

<ab id=”p084r_b3”>Dissolve rock salt or sandever that you have pulverized finely and placed on a marble slab in a pot. It will dry out while you reheat the mold, and will provide it with a binding to enable several castings. Try moistening it with tartar oil. </ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 84r "Sand from a Toulousain mine"

<ab id=”p084r_b5”>Toulousainsand, which is harvested from the Côteau du Puy-David, deep down in the earth, is excellent on its own, but to make it sustain multiple castings, I mix it with pulverized and moistened sandever, which hardens it, holds well together with it, and enables as many castings as you like. Try to moisten the crushed glass and other sands with the essences of the aforementioned salts. Like all natural sand, it needs to be reheated well. Before putting it to use, one pulverises it, because it is in a lump, and then one reheats it in a copper boiler (or similar) until it ceases to smoke.</ab>


<note id=”p084r_c5”>It is necessary to reheat it before using it. It becomes better for casting because it is reheated, but when it has been used too much, it must be refreshed with new sand.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 84v "Sand"

<ab id=”p084v_b1a”>I tried the hoof of an ox, quite burned, pulverized and very well crushed on porphyry, until it is fine enough to slip through your fingers without being felt. On its own, it makes a very clean mold. But because on its own it is very dry and lean, it demands to be well wet and humidified, with a thick broth with elm root.</ab>

<ab id=”p084v_b1b”>Scoria, very burned ox hoof, and felt, all burn well in a closed furnace. All three ground very finely on porphyry mold very neatly in lead, without any need to reheat it much, and by casting in a box mold either hot or cold.</ab>

<ab id=”p084v_b1c”>Felt on its own provides a very clean mold if wet, and comes off easily. And also makes the other two come off easily</ab>

<note id=”p084v_c1a”>These sands can only undergo one cast.</note>
<note id=”p084v_c1b”>A fat sand which sticks together neatly, makes bubbles.</note>
<ab id=”p084v_c1c”>A fat metal needs lean sand.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 84v "Eau Magistra"

<ab id=”p084v_b2a”>Some people think that salt water is not good, because the salt releases gas when heated and as a result causes bubbles. [In this case], there is only wine boiled with elm root.</ab>
<ab id=”p084v_b2b”>Sanding charcoal makes [things] come off well. But one finds that willow charcoal creates bubbles, but oak or beech charcoal does the job without making bubbles.</ab>

<note id=”p084v_c2”>Try burnt oysters.</note>
<title id=”p084v_a4”> Sand, for the most excellent lead of all, for large and small reliefs</title>

<ab id=”p084v_b4a”> I took white lead and crushed it dry on porphyry, to make it very fine. Then I moistened it a lot with very well beaten egg white, so that it became like a paste, by making it stick together perfectly with the flat of a knife. I let it rest for a while. </ab>

<note id=”p084v_c4”> Mix it well with the knife.</note>

<ab id=p084v_b4b”>and place it on a flat well-clean table, and since it has a desiccative quality, I knew it would dry out. I left it to dry for a while to reduce it to a powder and mold it with sand, it having been ground into small pieces with my fingers and the sharp side of a knife. I oiled my medal because oil cleans it without damaging it. And after cleaning and drying the medal with a cloth and ribbons of pork skin, I lightly oiled it once more with clear walnut oil, and gently swiped it with a cloth so that [the medal] would not be too oiled; having already considered that in this way [the medal] should come out easily, because the white lead, wet with egg white water, which would not damage the oil. This worked very well. I molded a medal very cleanly in high relief, without it having any lumps, which a lot of good sands such as felt, burnt bone, and scoria failed to do on the first attempt. I re-cooked it and my mold became hard like marble. And then I knew that sands used to mold big relief must be very moist with some kind of water, which gives body and firmness, like egg white, gummed water, [or] one [water] boiled with elm root. And lightly oil your medal. It can take as many firings as you want because it is as hard as glass. But soft lead and sour tin must be cast at a very hot temperature.</ab>

<ab id=p084v_b4c”>Since that moment, I have realized that even though this sand is excellent, can be cast often and molds very neatly, it is fat and it makes bubbles. In this way, the soft lead does not suit the mold well. But I have tried to mix it with lean sand, such as pumice, metal scrapings, and similar things, in order to give it body, and to help it come off easily, because lean sand [alone] does not come off easily; and yet it takes metal well.</ab>
<note id=p084v_c4b”>Try to mix white lead or minium with other sands.</note>
<note id=p084v_c4c”>Oil and smear with aspic oil, which will disappear when reheated, because the oil causes bubbling.</note>
<note id=p084v_c4d”>It is necessary to mold with egg white, and then mix it well. And once it is in the box mold, beat it well on the top with a pestle, or something else clean. This helps to make molding better and come out more easily.</note>

<note id=p084v_c4e”>It is best to fill the box mold in one go, because the mixture made of several sands, and the one from mines, that you use to fill the box mold, damages it.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 85v "Casters"

<ab id=“p085v_b1a”>They mix beaten egg white with earth of which they make the first layer of the crown [of a bell] in pieces. [They also make] bells and all other said pieces which the said [egg] white. This makes [it] come clean and sets and stabilizes the material. For the core of a small piece, egg white is also good.</ab>
<ab id=“p085v_b1b”>Red copper, in order to make it come clean, wants the mold to be a little hot and lead which is mixed with the red copper [is] therefore chiefly for small pieces.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 85v "Sand from a mine"

<ab id=“p085v_b3”>It wants to be well recooked for big metal [objects]. Some people burn it inside a furnace until it becomes quite black and they grind it on the porphyry. Other people burn it with asphalt, but when it is too burned, it does not mold so cleanly, because it lacks body, and is too thin. You can give body to the sand with tripoli or burned felt.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 85v "Sand Experiments"

<ab id=“p085v_b4a”>X I have tested sand of Th{oulous}e, and after seeing it well recooked two times in a skillet, I passed it through a fine tammy cloth, like the double [sieve] which apothecaries use, without grinding it further on the porphyry, as I have done other times. I moistened it [the sand] in infusion with elm root, and in it, I molded a big piece of a portrait of Jesus. I found it unmolded very well without having to tire myself out by hitting it from behind and it molded cleanly on one side of the relief and on the other concave. And [it was] of the thickness of a coin of forty sols. I cast [this] very hot</ab>

<note id=“p085v_c4”>Sand from a mine, well chosen and well reheated, is the most excellent of all without trying to find all other mixtures because it receives all metal. It does not like to be used hot because it bubbles the more finely. For large works, it is not the best because it does not have enough body to sustain [it],</note>

<ab id=”p085v_b4b”>with the material of a frying pan mixed with a knob of potin. And before that, I had so reheated my molded box frame, now on the flame of my stove, now putting glowing coals beneath it, that it became almost red. I let it cool and cast it. It came out with a quite neat relief on one side & hollow on the other, as much the figure as the letters. It is true that the material was whitish, as though it were metallic, but this was because of the potin. I made another cast with frying pan material, alone in the same sand, but not as reheated. It did not come out well.</ab>
<ab id=”p085v_b4c”>Then I molded burned bull’s foot bone, pulverized & strained through a double sieve, and wet with egg white or wine boiled with the root of an elm. I lightly knocked on top of it while molding. While opening the box frame, I found that the figures had come out not at all clean & it left the molds as though they were floury & crumbling. I wet the bone sand more so that it held together well between the figures, and in this way I molded neatly with good come-away. And even though it seemed like the ground bone was lumpy, when casting with frying pan material, it turned out that my figures were quite clean. It is true that I had really really heated up my box frame, it did not admit but one cast. I find that, when a sand is so fine that it gets as heavy as ceruse & even, without finding it arid, thin, sandy & rather spongy, that [sic] it molds quite neatly but it does not receive metal very well, as if it were porous and sucking up the material. But, being fatty & even, it puffs up & does not receive subtle impressions at all. I believe that the secret of casting well lies in finding a sand that conforms well to the metal, this one for lead, the other for another, because each has its own particular one, so that it be molded easily and keenly. Then let it firm up on its own for a few days if you have the leisure for it. And afterwards let it really heat up again, not instantly nor with a large fire, but little by little, otherwise it will crumble & always have some defects. Finally you must cast copper or latten or other great metals very hot and if possible with a large quantity of material that has a lot more heat than a small quantity. It’s necessary that the box frame be cold & that you cast all in one go. Always lute the opening of your box frame because metal touching fire or metal. </ab>

<note id=”p085v_c4c”>This bone has to be really crushed in a mortar, it must not be reheated very much, because then it would crumble.</note>

<ab id=”p085v_b4d”>[or metal] fills with bubbles. Most of all, make sure that the cast is always higher than the molded thing, since the sand swells very often when reheating, even in the middle, and therefore with the molded thing remaining higher than the cast, the metal cannot run easily or at all nor enter at all. Also make sure that the mold & the cast are indeed reheated. Also cast in one go & outside of the wind. And if your medal is really thin, when you want to mold it, put a card, or two or three thicknesses of paper, so that the mold will be lower than the cast. Also cast in the place where your medal is least thick & where the relief is lowest.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 86v "Excellent sand for lead, tin and copper"

<ab id=“p086v_b1a”>D</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1b”>Since, I molded with burned bone, mache de fer & burned felt, really crushed and ground on marble and mixed together. I got them very wet with beaten egg white. And, as in the other [casts], having covered the medal and filled the box frame with sable de mine, I gave it a little tap. I found it really stripped & molded quite neatly. I let it sit for a night. The morning after next I reheated it little by little for over the course of seven or eight hours (because if possible there must not remain any humidity at all in the box frame). Two times, I cast copper alloyed with ☾ there, as old K. The material came out really lustrous & resonant & without a coating. And my sand was not corrupted at all. Since, I have cast in there many casts of sweet lead and tin, which came out the best and neatest of any others I have yet found.

<ab id=”p086v_b1c”>When you mold make some grooves around your mold in the box frame, so that you draw in this manner the matter from all sides.</ab>

[image]

<ab id=”p086v_b1d”>Potin from sernique & other works runs yet better than fine latten. But I believe that half copper and half latten is better, which has served & been in very thin works, like frying pans & similar ones. I’ve seen come out quite well this mixture of half…</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1e”>In order to mold well, you should cast several medals together in a large box mold, because when there is a lot of material and the crucible is almost full, it becomes hotter. Then, if you do not succeed with one of the medals, another will be good.</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1f”>It is better to melt with a bellows furnace than with a wind furnace, because it heats more vigorously. It is true that latten melts better in the wind furnace, because it is more sour than copper.</ab>
<ab id=”p086v_b1g”>Some founders superstitiously believe that there are only three days in a week that are good for melting, that is, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. For them, the others are unlucky.</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1h”>When you mold, do not excessively pound on the medal that is in sand, because that prevents it from being cleanly stripped, and cracks the mold.</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1i”>See to it that sand does not go over the edges of the box mold, because if the molded medal is higher than the cast, metal will not easily enter the form. Therefore, always take care that the surface of your cast surpasses the mold in a straight line. To accomplish this, if you wish, put a piece of cardboard of whatever thickness you please on top of the mold.</ab>

<ab id=”p086v_b1j”>To prevent their large casting works from becoming too porous, founders are careful to heat their molds very well. And to know if the molds are heated enough, they tap them with their finger, and if they start ringing like a pot, they are heated enough.</ab>
<ab id=”p086v_b1k”>In order to cast their canons cleanly, they mix with their founder’s earth some fine casting sand, if they can get any.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 87r "Sand of Toulouse"

<ab id=”p087r_b1”>The [sand] generally considered good is the one found in a vineyard near Pech-David. But the best is the one is from the Touch, a river close to Saint-Michel and Blagnac, in a vineyard at a high altitude. This [sand] is thinner, and a bit greasier than the other, and better for small works. It should not be overheated.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 87v "Magistry"

<ab id=”p087v_b2”>Founders harvest the roots of a young elm when it is sappy, and boil it in wine, or better yet vinegar. They prepare a year’s worth of it and store it in a cask.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 87v "Sand of Toulouse"

<ab id=”p087v_b3a”>[In order to use] sand from a sandpit for casting, filter it through a double sieve, then having mixed it with molten resin it burns and heats, and becomes all red and hot as iron. Once it has cooled down it is completely black and can be pulverised on porphyry very well. Having prepared it like this and checked the smoothness of the surface with my nail, I moistened it with egg white and beat it vigorously, until it was not a paste anymore but a powder. I found [this sand] to release the cast very well, and molded very clean in lead and tin [with it], however it needs to be baked long enough and slowly.</ab>

<ab id=”p087v_b3b”>Others beat it strongly in a mortar, in small amounts at a time, thus it sacache and comes out very fine; then they bake it moderately, just enough to dry it, and then they crush it dry on porphyry. Thus it is made almost impalpable, and yet not too dry, and it retains the consistency and the binding quality of the earth to which it is related, and is better than when it is burnt. When you moisten it with egg white and pass it through a sponge it releases very clean for a low relief, but not a figure in high relief. Considering this, since then I experimented with moistening it only with strong vinegar. [That way] it releases a figure I previously had not been able to release [from the mold]. I think that even when you wet the finest sort with egg white, or in a similar fashion, or the thick sort pour remplir de chasses with water, salt, or vinegar, they do not mix so well. However, given that they are of one and the same nature, and are similarly moistened, they espouse each other, and hold together.</ab>

<note id=”p087v_b3c”> To mold well, when your sands are prepared, mold in one day. Bake slowly the next day, then cast the other.</ab>

<note id=”p087v_c3a”>Choose [sand] that comes in clods and lumps, and deep down in the earth, because commonly the one near the surface is too much akin to earth, whereas the deep one is similar to rock.</note>

<note id=”p087v_c3b”>I have sometimes molded with pure lead cast very hot, and the example as well as the principal were very clean, but since the vinegar gives it little binding, it held only for one cast.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 88r "Sand from pulverised rock salt and sand from a mineral finely ground on a marble"

<ab id=“p088v_b1”>After they have been dryly ground and beaten in the mortar, they are ground finely on the marble [slab]. I mixed the same quantity of each material, and in order to mix them better, I ground them on the porphyry [slab] again, and then filtered this through a double sieve or the sleeve of a shirt. Then, I put them on sheets of paper and stored it on a marble [slab] in a cellar. In one night, they were both moist enough [that there there was no need] to dampen them further because rock salt, like all other salts, dissolves in dampness. I molded with this very neatly because both should be quite fine. They should be moist enough so it can be removed easily [from the mold].</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 88r "Mineral Sand"

<ab id=“p088v_b2a”>It does not matter if the [sand’s] color is white or yellow. Above all it [the sand] must be lumped [together] much like a precious stone or a stone, and the deeper [in the earth] you get it from the the better. The signs of its quality is that it is thus gathered together, that, if the stone is removed as it should be [i.e. in the correct way], it forms pieces and lumps [together], which demonstrates its [capacity for] binding, and that it [the sand] is not too dry.</ab>

<ab id=“p088v_b2b”>However, it should crumble in your hands. And the grain must be quite small, fine, and homogeneous. If this [sand] is not fine enough, you can filter it and grind it up finely either with water, or through a sieve, or on the porphyry [slab]. That way it loses its dryness and becomes greasy and well bound. You can mold it in a box mold or in a mold without wool, and try it with lead because, if it does not swell and casts neatly, it will bear out well too […] Some say that fatty sands do not work for casting metal that is too hot. Artisans who undertake a big job and who want to save money do not need to crush [sand] and seek the curious [properties] of artificial sand; they have more to profit from finding natural sand that has the finest grain possible. And for a small job, they take advantage of finding the finest natural sand they can. For a smaller job, they only filter the sand through the sieve. But those who work on a very small scale crush the sand and grind it finely [until it becomes] impalpable, because they do not need as much [sand].</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 89r "Powder of ox bone and rock salt"

<ab id=“p089r_b1”>I pulverised them separately and ground them finely on the porphyry as much as I could. Then I mixed all of one with the other and re-ground it on the porphyry. Afterwards I moistened it in [a sheet of] paper folded in a moist napkin which is made wet more quickly from the moisture of the night, or the [moisture of] the cellar. I have never found [one] which can be removed more cleanly from the mold than this, though it needs to be quite moist. And if you want to cast small works, make it very hot. For tin, I believe that you cannot find a material that takes to powder better, and even for use withfine lead which has almost better results than tin. The bone of an ox hoof is always dry, that is why you must mix it with fatty sand, so it will bind like tripoli, salts, felt, ashes and similar materials. [If you do not mix ox-hoof bone,] it will not turn out from the mold and will not mold cleanly because it crumbles.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 89r "Natural sand"

<ab id=“p089r_b3”>This should not be reheated for lead and tin, it is better all new and fresh.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 89v "Ammonia salt and alabaster"

<ab id=”p089v_b1”>Dry ammonia salt, ground on a marble slab, molds very cleanly and is easily removed from the mold. When mixed with pulverized alabaster, use two ounces per pound of alabaster;it also is easily removed from the mold. It should be humidified in a cellar or in the cool humid evening air, or to have it quickly, in a sheet of paper in a moist towel. Take care not to leave it too long because it will soften, which would not be good if you wanted to use it as a box mold. However you can use it well as a core provided that you dry it gently and away from the fire. Otherwise the heat would make it swell, and push the salt onto the surface, causing lumps. If you want to mold a core, rub your medal with aspic oil. It is better to use 4 ounces of ammonia salt per pound. Humidify it in a damp place for two or three days, so that the material can be handled without sticking. You will mold very cleanly. Let the mold dry out and reheat it, that way it will get body, and become as hard as stone and when it is like that it is far easier to remove from the mold. If you do not reheat it, it could crumble when removed from the mold because of its thinness. It is the same with a large relief medal. Once you have molded, pulverize the material like before, and moisten it in a damp atmosphere.</ab>
<note id=”p089v_c1”>All sands which can be removed easily from the mold have body, well-made fat ammonia, and [is sand] that removes easily from a mold. There is nothing better for binding than the salt of the metal itself. When ground into powder, they pick up moisture, dry and reheat together.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 89v "White glassmaker's sand mix with ammonia salt"

<ab id=”p089v_b2”>You can find this sand in Cominge, near the town Aurignac. This sand is dry and as white as salt. Glassmakers and potters use this sand ground on the porphyry until it becomes as fine as possible. Easy to grind, this sand looks like calcined alabaster, and provides a very clean mold. I have not found another as suitable for delicate bas reliefs. It is also excellent to mold as a core, without any box mold. You must grind it very finely on a porphyry with gummed water or pure water, then apply a thick coat (as thick as mustard or a little bit thicker) over the medal, which has already been lightly rubbed with oil, walnut oil or, even better, aspic oil. For best results, let it dry by itself, away from fire, for one or two days. If you are in a hurry, you can heat it; it should not break if the coat is quite thick. If it is suddenly exposed to fire, some holes will appear; that does not happen if it has been gently dried. Once dry, reheat it, and it should allow for several castings.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 90r "Every kind of sand can be made useful"

<ab id=”p090r_b3a”>Artisans who do big works, and who need to search for things made by nature to pursue their work - because nature does not want to sell its wares to its children, and in order to save the time they would spend grinding, pulverizing and artificially preparing their sand -- look for sand from sandpits, which is not too fat from the soil, nor too arid and, consequently, without any binder effect. From deep in the sandpit, one can find some lumps and gravel that show the sand’s natural compaction; it is quite hard to break, with very small and fine grains, quite smooth between the fingers. And since it is found solely close to mountainous regions and arid locations akin to deserts, you cannot find any near every good town, where artisans live. Thus, if they can’t find any close to their home, they prefer to order some of this sand from afar, like Lyon, Venice or Paris, -- near the Sainte Chapelle-- and similar areas, instead of preparing it themselves. Nonetheless, you can be assured that in all locations, you can make sand from the sandpit...</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 117v "Mold as a core wax figuring and lead medals"

Rub them withoilwith a brush. But be sure that it be so softly that your medal be barely wiped with it & that it hardly appear to have been greased. After rub it withspiritsand heat thewaterwith which you will wet yoursand, that ofplaster,brick&alum, so that being sort of lukewarm when you cast it, theoilwill not refuse it, as it does with coldwater, & do not forget to moisten yoursandwith it, mixing it always with a littlesal ammoniac.

Medals molded in this way are very fine.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 118v "Excellent sand"

<ab id=”p118v_b1a”>Get some of the same sand, the finest that you can, for covering the medal.</ab>

<ab id=”p118v_b1b”>For the best [result], it is necessary to take sand already used in the core before using it in the box mold, until it can no longer be taken out.</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 118v "Casting in a box mold"

<ab id=”p118v_b2a”>The same sand which has been used in composed heated cores, i.e. of plaster, brick and feather alum, is excellent for casting in box molds, and I have tried it as follows. I crushed the pieces which had come out of core molds in a mortar, pestling slowly, because this sand is very soft. I did not pass it through a sieve, because the feather alum mixed in, which makes it bind together, would not pass through. But I did refine upon marble what seemed to me too coarse, and having thus prepared it, I moistened it with the sal ammoniac water made of sal ammoniac the size of two walnuts, in a bottle of common water the size of a bottle in which one boils ground barley, or in a good pot of water. You should find the water fairly salty. I mixed in half a glass of sal ammoniac two silver spoonfuls of spirits. Having thus moistened the sand in order to give it a nice hold, though it still came apart easily, I sprinkled my medal with charcoal pulverized with a file to remove the oil fat, and all other fat. One must avoid these, since they hinder good stripping. I blew on the medal and molded it, and with the female part of the box mold full, I marked and made a line on the back and side of the medal, and on the nearby sand as well. In order that the second box mold take the imprint thereupon to indicate the place for making the cast, I uncovered the contour of the medal and pounced the whole side with pulverized carbon, and then I filled the male part with sand. I separated the box mold and did not strike the corners of the medal to make it strip, since that cracks the sand and makes it come apart. But I did strike the back of the box mold, holding the place of the medal on the bottom, and it molded very cleanly. If it hadn’t stripped thus, I would have waited to remove it until the box molds had been dried out over heat. I lit a row of charcoal between two little trivets of iron in the form that you see [viz. image id=”p118_d2” in the left margin], and put the back of the box molds thereupon, and the imprint on top, since in this way, they dry out slowly. And if, by chance, they should crack from being too moistened, it’s on the back that they take the harshest heat, and the imprint remains safe and whole.

<note id=”p118v_c2a”>For medals and flat things, the true heat of lead and tin. That is when it is melted gently.</note>

<note id=”p118v_c2b”>Note that I filled the box mold before pressing, and did not strike it, but pressed it with the strength of my hands alone, since striking it may distort it. Make sure that your box mold does not move at all, and if you put some moistened sand under it, it will only hold in place more firmly.</note.

<note id=”p118v_c2c”>Make a cast that is not too thick, as not to weigh the medal down, but cast wide enough over the medal that it covers the third part. Do not forget the vents.</note>

<note id=”p118v_c2d”>Drying box molds means removing their dampness, so that they do not smoke any longer, though they be very hot.</note>

<note id=”p118v_c2e”>To heat is to redden the box mold, which is done for gold and for silver.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 120r "Impress medals made from wax"

You can mold your relief withwaxmixed with a bit ofresinto make it harder and firmer, whatever relief that you wish, either an animal or a medal. And then, fashion a hollow out of this relief inbrassorcopper. Or mold your [wax] in relief and strike it in a sheet oftin. And fill [your final product] withlead, and heat it. Try [to use] blades ofstone leafto make the hollow for lizards &

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 125v "Plaster to cast with wax"

When you want to cast inwaxin aplastermold, you must know this secret, that there is need that your mold be inhot water. The animal will never come out as clean as in metal, becausewaxgrips. But to rough out an animal as close to natural as possible in order to fix it afterwards, you have to remove all the scales, because thewaxwill permeate them & will not be able to be stripped off. In molding the animal, take off the scales forwax, but on the contrary [when not molding with wax] rub them against their grain so that they raise up, because then these animals [sc. those not molded in wax and prepared in this way] will show better. Do not wait to strip off your wax until it is cooled down at all. But while it is a bit hot, after you have molded the first casting of the animal, uncover it halfway so that it be stripped in so doing. And having as much in one mold as in the other, make very many large castings holding on to the animal in order to fortify them [...] stripping, & afterwards you’ll cut it.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 132v "Sand Is Better Made with Distilled Vinegar"

<note id=”p132v_c2b”>You can add this sand to the molds you want to use to cast silver, because it make molds firmer, and when you scratch it, you will find it a bit rougher than the other molds not made from this sand. You mold very clean with this sand.</note>

<note id=”p132v_c2c”>You can use this one for all molds, because it prevents them from cracking and bursting when heated. This sand withstands several casts for molding flat medals. Sand from steel or needle filings is redder and better.</note>

-126R: Molding fruits and animals in sugar

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 12r "Casting Sulfur"

<title id=”p012r_a1”>Pour mouler de soufre</title>

<ab id=”p012r_b1”>Le soufre se faict beau avecq le noir a noirci mesle ou<lb/>
avecq sanguine pulverisee qui le rend plus dur et plus fort<lb/>
layant bien laisse fondre jusques a ce quil soict liquide<lb/>
co{mm}e huile / y meslant du verdegris tu en gecteras dans<lb/>
le plastre un lesard ou aultre chose fort nette</ab>
<note id=”p012r_c1”>Il ne le fault pas gecter<lb/>
quil ne soict bien refroidi<lb/>
& quil naye perdu toutes<lb/>
ses pustules & bouillons<lb/>
et ne soict bien<lb/>
abaisse & rendu<lb/>
uny co{m}me [illegible] eau<lb/>
Le noir a noircir<lb/>
luy donne un beau<lb/>
vernis& le rend<lb/>
plus necte Il fault<lb/>
employer le soufre<lb/>
jaulne du plus beau<lb/>
car le grisastre & vif<lb/>
nest pas bon Ne gecte pas<lb/>
au vent & au froict<lb/>
car il soufleroit</note>

<ab id=”p012r_b1”>Sulfur is improved by mixing in soot black or powdered sanguine, which makes it harder and more resistant, after letting it melt entirely until it becomes liquid and similar to oil. Mixing it with verdigris, you can use it for casting a lizard or something else in plaster, very cleanly.</ab>

<note id=”p012r_c1”>You must not cast it until it has quite down and lost all its bubbles and eyes, and its surface has fallen and become flat as water. Soot black gives it a fine luster and makes it neater. Use yellow sulfur of the best kind, as the greyishnaturalsulfur is no good. Don’t cast it in the wind and cold for it would fill with bubbles.</note>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 15r "Casting Metals"

Candlesticks and small works are cast in a box mold with sand. Having stamped the work, sprinkle it with flour in order to make the copper or latten run better. When the sand has been in use for one month, it is necessary to take some new [sand] because that which has been used, being cooked again*, dries & loses its bond. Yet it is used mixed with the new [sand], because it makes the work less porous. Large works such as artillery, bells and similar things are cast in earth, and copper cast in earth makes less crust and is whiter than when cast in sand. The earth is sandy clay mixed with horse dung and cloth waste. The earth that has been used for casting, which is black, baked and as if burnt, is mixed with artificial sand, and is very good. For softening and making the copper run, once it is melted, one throws in some lead, which does not form an alloy but is found on the surface of the cast.
*by the heat of molten metal

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 15r "Casting gold and silver"

The sand must be made from very dry and arid material, and well- annealed because if it were humid, like founder’s sand, the gold and silver would rub off and bear damage. It is also necessary for the earth to absorb the metal because cast gold or silver become very porous. That is why it must be beaten out again, otherwise it is brittle, as seen in spoon handles.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 42v "Casting Sand"

The key is to grind it well upon marble, and that it be extremely fine; mix in a bit of calcined alabaster.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 47v "Melting"

To make it flow neatly, take half metal and half copper. Others take a measure of potin and a measure of latten. Others take a measure of latten from candlesticks and a measure of latten from a basin. And among basins, the latten from larger ones is harder than that from skillets because the material must be softer in order to give them such a small circumference. For the large ones [basins], whose circumference is more ample, one may take a harder material. The harder the latten, the better it flows and the neater it casts, but it must be cast very hot. As one wishes to cast, one should put lead on the material, which makes it flow, run and smoke, but be careful that the mold does not get damaged. And if you want to cast pieces on fire, mix more rosette than latten, so that it is less brittle. The founder’s mould used to melt metal should be better that those used by glassmakers because glass is not as heavy as metal. And in this instance, one should coat the founder’s mold with earth and crushed glass.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 48v "Lead tin"

They crack if they are often melted again and thicken and burn, so that even if a salmon is made, the tin becomes thick at the bottom if it is not stirred often during casting. It is better for casting to melt some lead and some tin and to renew it each time. The antimony makes them breakable, the iced tin makes them whiter. Pewterers mix a pound of iced tin with a quintal of fine tin and two and a half or three pounds of red, mild cauldron copper, which is better than latten. There is fine and mild tin and sour tin. Pewterers cast the sour as grills to sell it better. They go better and more cleanly in stone moulds than in copper molds because copper is fat and draws the mild tin when heated. Or when casting a large work, three quarts of lead with one pound of mild tin produces a very liquid mixture which is appropriate for casting and is as shiny as a mirror. Laxunge glass lightens them. All things that lighten metals a lot and remove their thickness and natural density and make them as liquid as water make them appropriate for casting because their thickness stops them from flowing. The mild tin is more even than the sour tin, which is whiter and seems to have been polished like a mirror. To properly alloy the tin and the lead, you have to melt them together, Then, mix them together a little bit at a time and throw it often on a marble tile. And when it is going well, you will see it becoming unified and shining as if it were burnished. Because sometimes it becomes spotted due to too much lead and sometimes due to too
much tin. There is some tin allied with more lead. Ordinary tin is allied with some lead.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 49r "Lead Casting"

Those who cast these small items, sold in front of the churches, melt half a pound of lead on a pound of tin, and cast in a stone frame. And if they want their work [to be] whiter, they use half of tin and half of lead, but the first mixture is the best, and does not make bubbles.You have to cast it hot enough, otherwise it won’t flow. Some [people] smoke their molds with a rosin candle for neat casting. The antimony makes the matter harsh and breakable. The looking-glass tin makes the work whiter, but does not make it flow more than with tin that is correctly made with pure lead. Those who make very precise lead castings use puncheons. Tintiers cast with copper molds. It is said that one makes lead adhere to glass by using resin. Some people put a quarter of tin on lead. Glass tin makes the work stronger.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 49r "Sand for Lead Casting"

Rye straw ashes well boiled, dried and then well sieved. alloy it with egg white. One can add copper, latten and others.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 53r "Copper"

If, while in the fire and while being cast, it touches the iron, that iron will be so sour that it will be impossible to forge.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 53r "Lead Casting"

According to some it is mixed, half tin and half lead and, in order to heat it, a little arsenic is mixed in. It is cast well in small sizes in a cuttlefish bone, provided it is good.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 fol. 53r "Lead and Copper Casting"

Lead and tin come out well in white chalk but the softer it is the better. That from Champagne wins first prize, and it is transported to Lyon. Burnt and calcinated horse bones cast very neatly.

Note #1: I believe that the marrow from the horns of oxen or sheep, that is to say, the spongy bone from inside, casts quite neatly and is better than bone.

Note #2: Note that any sour metal comes out better than a fat one. Also, lean sand receives it and absorbs it better than dense sand.

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 folio tl_p109r "Working in rough with wax"

mix wax with turpentine, butter (the Italians use tallow), sulphur
__http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b10500001g/f223.image__
tl_p109r.docx
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b10500001g/f223.image
<title id=”p109r_a1”>Working in rough with wax</title>
<ab id=”p109r_b1”>When the wax is too hard, one mixes in some turpentine or a bit of butter, which renders the wax malleable, and cleaner than tallow, which the Italians mix in, because oftentimes, it is necessary to put the tools into the mouth, [tools] which are better when made from box wood or antler.</ab>
<title id=”p109r_a2”>Wax for molding —</title>
<ab id=”p109r_b2”>Since the wax is molten, they have some sulphur in a spoon or crucible and pour it in the molten wax. And with the sulphur going to the bottom or staying on top, it stays where it is and mixes only its substance in the wax, and renders it more meltable when warming it, in such a way that having molded it, [the wax] gently melts in the mold like butter, without leaving any blister or boil. Also be warned to not give it too much heat.</ab>
<note id=”p109r_c2”>If</note>
<title id=”p109r_a3”>Molding wax</title>
<ab id=”p109r_b3”>So that your mold takes hold without repelling any surface on a form or figure in wax, it is necessary to rub the wax with oil and soak your sand in lukewarm water, because cold water repels oil even more and will not make a good layer on the wax.
<note id=”p109r_c3”> Rub the oil on very very lightly, [use] so little that it hardly appears at all. Then rub with some spirits. After soak your sand in lukewarm water so that it does not repel the oil.</note>
<title id=”p109r_a4”>Forge bellows</title>
<ab id=”p109r_b4”>It is better that at the end with the air chamber the bellows be set in some kind of bit of cloven board because they are more secure this way. Afterwards you can lightly secure them from the top. It is necessary that the nozzles be four fingers above the bottom of the forge.</ab>
<title id=”p109r_a5”>Molding snakes</title>
<ab id=”p109r_b5a”>When you get them for molding, if it is possible, do not remove their teeth if you [think you might] want to keep them, because having had their teeth removed, it hurts their gums and mouths, and they can no longer eat. You can keep [the snakes] in a barrel full of bran or even better of earth, in a cool place, or in a glass bottle. And give them some live frog or other live animal because they do not eat anything [that is] dead. Also I have noticed that</ab>

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 folio tl_p116r "Molding as a core using the same sand for wax images, lead medals and similar things"

*In this recipe the same techniques are applied in relation to the sand casting of an object in wax or lead ("tes images de cire ou de plomb"). (I here differ my language from the translation, which currently reads "your wax medal or your lead medal." Also, the translation vastly simplifies the original French.)
*Rub ("oings" = oindre) the wax or lead object with:

1. "very thin olive oil" ("huile d’olif fort délie & fort legerem{ent} de sorte que l’huile ne faict" -- would this imply that the olive oil has been diluted somehow? It would seem that the viscosity of the oil is a concern, because the author wants the liquid materials to "hold to the medal"; presumably an oil that is too viscus would collect into droplets on the surface.)
2. warmed brandy

*To the sand add "soaked feather alum," which (according to Wikipedia) could be Halotrichite, "a highly hydrated sulfate of aluminium and iron."
("Aprés gecte ton sable de plastre matton & alum destrempe dessus ayant dispose ton image sur la mandorle d’ardile")
* To remove the cast objects from investment, the author recommends rubbing them with oil or brandy (repetition?).
** The rubbing of the wax or lead object with oil and/or brandy, discussed at both the beginning and end of this recipe, seems to be about how to REMOVE it from the investment.
*NB: The portion of the text labeled "note id=”p116r_c2", which occupies the left-hand margin of the page, is concerned with how to pour the sand and what the sand's thickness should be.

http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b10500001g/f237.image


tl_p116r.pdf

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 folio tl_139v "Casting wax to mold an animal that one has not got"

wax with coal and sulphur
tl_p139v.docx
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f285.item
<ab id=“p139r_b1b”> are made of earth or blades of copper, or iron, or wood covered with white iron, in order to bury more easily these aforementioned molds between the thin sheets of copper, estric or one of iron.</ab>
<title id=“p139v_a1”>Casting wax to mold an animal that one has not got</title>
<ab id=“p139v_b1a”>Take some white wax which is much more appropriate for this kind of work than anything else, because it is much firmer and does not leave as much filth, as much as you need to cast the animal that you propose, and no more. And [take] a half quantity of ground coal and neatly sieved through a cloth or coal sleeve, using it to give some color to your wax, that would otherwise be transparent and you will not be able to see your lines as clearly. Put your wax on the coal fire to melt. And when it is well-melted and well-liquified, take a full eared-porringer of melted wax, [and] as much sulphur as the amount of a large pulverized walnut. Melt all of over a slow fire and when it is melted, do not leave it on the fire because it will become too hot. But take it off and keep stirring it with a little stick and when it has finished bubbling and is as liquified as water, cast it into the wax that you will have previously removed from the fire. And mix and stir both of the them so that they join together. After stir in little by little while continuously mixing, the charcoal that has been repeatedly ground, and in this way it will be very well incorporated. This is how you will know that your wax has gone beyond its ideal heating point, it will release no more smoke, it will start to have lines appearing on the side and not in the middle, and those lines will be close to each other. If you cast too hot, you will not be able to separate your wax from your mold and it would stick to the cast. When it is at the right state, stir it with a little stick so that the pulverized charcoal is well mixed in and has not fallen to the bottom of the mixture. And in this way, throw it in your mold bit by bit and not in one go, because wax is not runny.</ab>
<note id=“p139v_c1a”>This black sulphured wax is for fashioning round figures that do not come out of the mold. And they need to be burned in the moule au noyau rather than be opened like the ones that have something jutting out or an intertwining of legs and arms. And this wax, thanks to the sulphur, will melt with little heat and leave without leaving any filth. If by some misfortune the crushed charcoal remains in ashes, when you open the mold and blow on it, it will come clean.</note>
<note id=“p139v_c1b”>To make wax serpents or other things to affix to candles, it is necessary to cast them with esbaucher wax of all colors.</note>

BnF Ms Fr 640 150r "Very strong wax"

• wax with resin & red bole
• do not cast hot

tl_p150r.docx
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Very strong wax
Mix your wax with resin and red bole Do not cast very hot
SOMETHING INTERESTING FROM THE DICTIONNAIRE DE L’ACADEMIE FRANCAISE : BOL D’ARMENIE : reddish earth from Armenia, gilders use it. Blacksmiths use it also for horses, and almost all of them are in ignorance of the right word and call it Brouillamini (THE WORD BROUILLAMINI IS IN THE MANUSCRIPT)
Mixtures made of lead and tin
If you want to mould hollow something, like turtles, prepare a 50/50 mixture made of fine lead and tin
To mould flowers, prepare a mixture with almost only tin, that is to say one pound of fine tin and two ounces of fine lead.
To mould lizards which are as thick as one or two fingers, prepare a mixture with almost only lead, that is to say one pound of fine lead and 4 ounces of fine tin
The reheated moulds cannot withstand several casts, but the moulds where you cast tin and lead to mould flat medals which are dry, withstand a lot of casts.

BnF Ms Fr 640 150r "Moulds"

• mould: brick as binder
• mould: ground iron filings for strength

tl_p150r.docx
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Moulds
A very thick mould wouldn’t break as easily while reheating, as a thin mould which shouldn’t be on fire for a long time, fire would damage thin moulds, even if made from some plaster not very very strong
It is much better to reheat one single mould than to reheat several moulds together, because several moulds need a higher fire, than one single mould, also the side of the moulds which touch lighted coals reflect the heat, thus moulds break and crack most of the time.
So, heat your mould one by one, and do not light any fire, just cover the mould
Most of the time tin and lead turn brittle when they become red-hot , to soften the matter do not cast it red, and the cast must be pointed
Brick would cool the metal, brick is useful just to give binder to your mixture.
Very well ground iron filings make the moulds firm

BnF Ms Fr 640 150v continuation of "Moulds"(?) and "Moulding Hollow"

• 50/50 tallow and black wax (seems to allow wax to flow better)

tl_p150v.docx
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You must thread this point in the middle of the cast, through the hole. Use this process with moulds which are stripped in several parts, like moulds for turtles. That way the core won’t move, when you have a mould in two parts you don’t need to thread any points through the hole in the middle of the mould
Make some notches all around the hole where you want to cast before moulding the core this is a way to fix the mould. Thanks to the tallow the wax wouldn’t block the hole while emptying, make a 50/50 mixture of tallow and black wax.
It is much better to mould hollow all kind of thick pieces, because a mass of lead remain hot for a long time and eat the mould
After the cast, mould the belly side of the shell, where you did the hole, and solder it.
When your core is casted, it is much better to dip your mould into hot water to open it in order to remove as much as possible wax. Do always soften your mould into hot water. The less wax you get the best it is, because when you heat your mould again you won’t get so many lumps. Also if your mould contain less wax it will heat quicker. When you open the mould […] but you can rework it easily, do not cast that .
Moulding hollow
Thread a wire through the hole in order to hold the core and to prevent it from moving. Put your mould on the table, the hole side up, as you see, then set your circle of clay which must be two fingers high around the hole, as you did with the other moulds. Then dilute your sand which must not be too thick, and pour it through the hole of the circle, the hole must be full. But do not pour your sand into the middle of the hole, but on the side because the already made mould absorb and […] the liquid. The new sand you cast on the side of the mould dries very quickly, and would block the mould which couldn’t be entirely filled up, when you are casting on the side, if you see that your mould is blocked put your finger or any point through the hole in order to unblock it, that way the hollow wax will be filled up, pour the thickest sand at the end in order to harden the mould because water always soften it. When your cast is made, cut the circle of clay and […] what is on the hole where you have moulded the core, this process won’t be seen. When your mould is arranged, lute it all around with the sand you had used to make the moulds, reheat your mould on a low fire at the beginning, put the hole side of your mould down that way the wax gently flow out. If you place your mould on a high fire until the wax has completely flowed out, wax would boil inside the mould and leave some lumps.

BnF Ms Fr 640 151r Waxes

• mentions "white wax" and "sulphured black wax"
• coal mixed with white wax

tl_p151r.docx
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<ab id=”p151r_b1”>
The white wax from which you had made your sulphured black wax hasn’t so much matter when dry and cleaned, and doesn’t leave any lump in your mould, also it flow very gently out of the mould. Coal which is mixed with the white wax could leave some matters in the mould, but they can be burned and reduced to ashes which can be empty by blowing. You can open your mould when the wax is melted if there aren’t any delicate thing which could break in your mould. Open the clamps made of lute, then open your mould and cover it with a coat of common lute, then dust the whole thing with crushed bricks in order to better handle the mould. let dry the lute softly instead of drying it on fire which would melt the wax. When the wax has flowed out of the mould, burn the wax and the coat which remain in the mould. when your mould had been heated once, lute again because bad plaster make the mould shrink, the joints would open and make burrs. Do not heat your mould twice if you cast only lead or tin, but the lute must be very dry and the mould not very hot. If you want to mould something thick, like turtles, or something hollow mix half lead with half tin, but if you want to mould something thin like flowers mix more lead than tin which swell when casted a bit thick, and which oftenly make flaws. Mister Alexandre says that he never had any problem with a 50/50 mixture of lead and tin to mould think as thick as a back’s knife. If you add some filings the joints will be almost invisible, and the burrs will be very small and fine. You can rework your mould, dip it into water for a long time, then pull the earth of the core out of the hole, but before removing it, rework the turtle, this earth can be used as cement to rework or flatten something with a small carving tool. If there are some burrs on the joints of the mould, remove them with a burin called […], a small sharp knife, or a small file, then use the small carving tool. Keep the real turtle in front of you in order to make a realistic work.
You can […] (this work is missing, lets say fix, maybe it is harden) on a file the point of a small carving tool which isn’t hammered in order to make something lumpy. Make a 50/50 mixture of lead and fine tin to mould these turtles and hollow things. It is much more difficult and much longer to make a mould for turtle than to make a dozen of moulds for flowers. If you add filings to your mixture you won’t get any burrs, but if there are some burrs on the sides of the mould, they’ll be much thinner than a piece of paper if the mould had been squeezed with a press. To make scales of turtles and of other animals use some small carving tools which are round like the tool used by a shoe-reworker (porte-pièce : is the tool used by the shoe-reworker to set a piece on the shoe, I didn’t find the translation)
Turtles which are not mouled hollow doesn’t need so much work. You can mould them in two pieces, rework them with small carving tool, (and other kind of carving tools) </ab>
<ab id=”p151r_b2”>
Cast cold black wax in the mould. It is necessary to open half of your mould to cast, if the figure made of black wax breaks, it is not a problem because you can rework it with the point of a warm wire. You could also join the pieces in the mould by joining very well the two half parts of the mould. when the figure is large, cross inside the mould wires in order to hold the core </ab>
<ab id=”p151r_b3”>
When you cast lead or tin, you must redden your mould as a mould where you burn animals. That way wax melts well and don’t leave anything inside the mould, because wax flow out if you bend the mould to the cast while heating. When the mould is heated, let it cool down, then blow inside the mould and suck up, that way the ashes in the wax comes out of the mould, do use bellows </ab>

BnF Ms Fr 640 50r "Molding"

• molding a demi-relief with paper, oil and wax

tl_p050r.docx
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<title id=”p050r_a1”>Preserving fruit for the entire year</title>
<ab id=”p050r_b1”>Take a rounded glass phial, with a large enough opening to receive cherries and plums and whatever fruit you want. Put in some hot water [and leave it] for two hours, and once your water is cold, throw it out and turn the phial upside down onto its opening on a perfectly even table and in a room where there is not a bit of draft or wind. Then prepare a stopper of fresh wax, wrapped in oilcloth, and adapt it precisely to the glass phial so that it will be ready to stop it once you have put in the fruit. And once you have hand-picked the fruit, only the non-rotten fruit, and on a warm and dry day, withdraw to the room, well closed so that no wind or draft can get in, and put it gently and deftly in the bottle. Then stop the bottle well with the stopper and lute it, making your lute, if you want, with some quicklime and oil, so that no water gets in. Then put your bottles into a tub full of water, in a cellar, during the summer, and in the winter put your bottles into a basket filled with some weights and lower it to the bottom of a deep well. Because in the winter the water in the tub would be too cold if your cellar is not warm enough, because the water needs to be like river water.</ab>
<title id=”p050r_a2”>Molding</title>
<ab id=”p050r_b2”>If you want to quickly mold in demi-relief anything you come upon, fold some paper five or six times over, and place it on the medal and make sure the paper is folded around the edges of the medal so it is very secure. Next take a stick, broad at one end and with a well-dulled point at the other, and rub firmly on the paper, and retrace the lines with the point of the stick until you reckon that your impression is well done. Then, at your convenience, rub oil onto the paper lightly with a brush, and cast some tallow or wax or sulphur into it. And the paper, without burning, will give you a neat design that you can then mold in plaster or tripoli and then in lead and other metals.</ab>
<note id=”p050r_c2”>Polished cardboard of little thickness and slightly humid is appropriate. Then if you want, strengthen it with some paper glued on the reverse side.</note>

BnF Ms Fr 640 122v "Molding hollow"

• wax mixed with tallow keeps its heat better and flows better (see also 150v)

tl_p122v.docx
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<title id=”p122v_a1”>Cleaning the platter and the spoon you had used to soak sand </title>
<ab id=”p122v_b1”>Clean very carefully the platter and the spoon you had used to soak sand after casting otherwise they would keep some dry sand which would crumble into your sand when you cast again, and that could damage your work. Also if you don’t clean your mold these little pieces of sand would peel and damage your cast. </ab>
<title id=”p122v_a2”>Molding hollow </title>
<ab id=”p122v_b2”>Wax alone cool down very soon, and does not run everywhere very well, tallow keeps its heat and run everywhere. But tallow alone is not good that is why you have to mix wax and tallow together. You can easily mold hollow bodies of crawfishes, or bodies of other small animals, but it isn’t so easy to mold hollow their legs. </ab>
<note id=”p122v_c2”>The first part of your mold which is first casted on […] clay cracks more easily on fire than […] </note>
<title id=”p122v_a3”>Molding medals and flat things </title>
<ab id=”p122v_b3”>You haven’t to make a paste to cast, because if your mixture is thinner it will perfectly cover your medal. Make a paste to cast fine works. The thinner mixture allow your flat medal to be easily stripped. Your cast must not be as thick as your medal, in the case this medal isn’t as thin as a sheet of paper. First cast where your medal is, do not make a thick cast into the intake of your medal or work, otherwise your work wouldn’t be well stripped. Make a cast not very thick from the middle of your work to the top, and make a cast very thin from the middle of your work to the bottom. Do not forget to notch the top of your mold, that way metal won’t run too fast. </ab>

BnF Ms Fr 640 140v "To cast in sulfur"

• note: "Try sulfur passed through melted wax, since it won’t catch fire & won’t make more little eyes" ["ne faict plus doeillets"]

tl_p140v.docx
__http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f287.item__
<ab id=“p139v_b1d”>
to engrave on silver & copper with aqua fortis. With this [wax] too, one fills the cavity of a relief, & then casts in this cavity, with moistened sand, which immediately takes the relief very neatly. And then you can cast its cavity on it in copper, gold, and silver, and make really singular seals.</ab>
<note id=“p139v_c1e”>Seals</note>
<title id=“p140v_a1”>To cast in sulfur</title>
<ab id=“p140v_b1”>
To make a clean cast in sulfur, arrange the pith of some bread under the brazier, as you know how to do. Mold whatever you want & leave it to dry & you will have a very clean work.</ab>
<note id=“p140v_c1”>
Try sulfur passed through melted wax, since it won’t catch fire & won’t make more little eyes.</note>
<title id=“p140v_a2”>Molding and reducing a big piece</title>
<ab id=“p140v_b2”>
Mold it with the pith of the bread just out of the oven, or like that aforementioned, & and in drying out it will diminish & by consequence so too the medal that you have cast. You can, in this way, in lengthening out or enlarging the imprinted bread, vary the figure & from one face make several quite different ones. The bread straight from the oven is best. And that which has been reheated twice shrinks more. You can cast sulfur without letting the imprint on the bread dry, if you want to cast it as large as it is. But, if you want to let it diminish, let it dry either more or less.</ab>
<title id=“p140v_a3”>Casting of lead and tin in plaster</title>
<ab id=“p140v_b3”>
If you want to cast some flat medal or some animal that is not very heavy, and that must not be burnt inside the mold, you can rather cast in plaster & brique mixed as above; and not in plaster alone, because it will shrink too much feeling a vehement fire if it is not kept from it. But, with the brick, it holds well. In any case, take heed to dry out your mold at length & on a soft fire & with patience, because it has no need of reheating. But when your work is of flowers or other things whose molds need to be reheated & fired, mix the plaster with some stone alum & also with filings. I have molded in plaster & brick very neatly & it has endured many castings.</ab>
<note id=“p140v_c3a”>
I tried the plaster & brick alone and molded en noyau with them as with the others. My mold was very clean, having lightly oiled my metal & rubbed it with spirits. I made my casting wide at the entrance, proceeding while making it thin just until the medal is quite slender. I changed the casting which had taken a good hold of the medal. I dried out the mold on a soft fire & at the end, let it really heat up without its turning red. I let it cool to such a degree that I could hold my finger to it without burning myself. I made a line of 4 ℥ of tin, ix deniers of lead. Afterwards I put with 4 ℥ of tin, xii deniers of lead. It is very good & fine.</note>
<note id=“p140v_c3b”>
When there is nothing to burn inside your mold, it is not necessary to reheat for lead and tin. But for flowers and that which must be burned yes indeed.</note>

BnF Ms Fr 640 120r "Stamped medals made from wax"

• wax mixed with resin to make it harder and firmer (for molding, not casting, in wax)

tl_p120r.docx
__http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f246.item__
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f246.item
<title id=”p120r_a1”>Stamped medals made from wax</title>
<ab id=”p120r_b1”>You can mold your relief with wax mixed with a bit of resin to make it harder and firmer, whatever relief that you wish, either an animal or a medal. And then, fashion a hollow out of this relief in brass or copper. Or mold your [wax] in relief and strike it in a sheet of tin. And fill [your final product] with lead, and heat it. Try [to use] blades of stone leaf to make the hollow for lizards &</ab>
<title id=”p120r_a2”>Sand for casting gold</title>
<ab id=”p120r_b2”>Take common sand made of alum, plaster and brick, according to the composition above-mentioned. Add to it some more feather alum. And add as well something a third part of crocum ferri. However whatever quantity is never harmful, because [crocum ferri] is the one that makes gold shiny and makes it come out of its cast easily. But it is best that your crocum has previously been left for three days and three nights in the furnace of glassworkers, in a flat box, where it is not very thick so that it will reheat better.</ab>
<note id=”p120r_c2a”>You can easily cast gold with the common sand of goldsmiths, but [make sure] that you add some substance that makes it runny. Before the invention of crocum, one cast flowers in silver, but not in gold. This has only been known in Germany for forty years.</note>
<note id=”p120r_c2b”>Sublimate is often used by goldsmiths for gold. Some people add sulphur, but they are all wrong, because sulphur makes things sour, even if it heats [well.], And sublimate gets agitated,boils and bubbles. It is very good to clean gold because its exaltation draws [the bad stuff] out that disappears in the smoke. But to heat up gold, and to keep the heat, there is only the color of verdigris, salt of ammoniacum, saltpeter, and borax. This makes it runny and you will be able to throw in a branch from the Santoinge.</note>
<title id=”p120r_a3”>Nightingale</title>
<ab id=”p120r_b3a”>It is necessary for the cage, made like those for larks found in barns and lined with green fabric, to be made with something that slides out from underneath, so that you can refresh the dirt everyday, because the nightingale loves it, and mix in some ants. You can carry an ant-hill with its dirt in a barred full of earth, and keep them there and they will lay their eggs and in this way, you can always have access to them when you need them, should you enjoy feeding nightingales. When you caught it, it was fat and full. And to keep it in such good shape, on the first day, you must take it in you hand and open its beak and place in it, using a sharp twig, some mutton heart or other delicate flesh, chopped up not too finely, so that the belly does something, and make sure that it does not get smaller or thinner, until it has gotten used to it. And feed it in this way three or four times a day, and also give it something to drink. The next morning, you will give him in his cage some well-minced flesh mixed with the yolk of a hard-boiled egg, and change this mixture two or three times a day, because it will not eat it if it is hard and not fresh. And If it goes half a day without eating, you must feed it as before and do so until</ab>

BnF Ms Fr 640 140r [continuation of 139v?, see above]

• "This wax is very soft & friendly & pliant, like copper. And if it is hard [this is] because of sulfur, which makes it melt more easily than than other [wax], so much that you can see evidence on a hot slate. And the sulfur that you put inside will be found the second time that you melt it, [as] cracks on the bottom. Having in this way passed through wax, it will not catch fire at all when put to a candle. And in this case, I believe that it will cast quite the medal [illegible]. One uses the same wax in place of varnish to [illegible]."

tl_p140r.docx
__http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f286.item__

<ab id=“p139v_b1b”>
not like other things. And for this one, you can cast two or three times until your mold is full. Now, concerning this mold of pulverized white plaster & reheated in the manner of the sand from the preceding recipes, you should have made it long ago because it is used many times. But, before using it, soak it for a good hour in cold water, & at a minimum, at least as long in hot water that at first is so hot that you can’t hold your finger in it. And not that it absorbs no more, but that it appears very wet overall without water seeping into it. In removing it closed from the hot water, cast your wax in such a state of heat as has been described. And neither the first nor the second casting will readily come out well, hardly, until the mold is soaked. Let it cool down before opening it so that the cast thing not break. You will know that the casting is good when the wax coming back out of the mold is thin and even. Remember to make several castings along the whole length of the mold so that in this way the wax runs better.</ab>
<image id=”p139v_d1”>[image]</image>
<ab id="p139v_b1c">
Make the first casting twice as large as other molds. And if, in the first casting, your work fills with bubbles and in so doing does not come out neatly, it’s all the same, because you have to face the fact that the three or four first do not readily come out well. Firstly, you will know whether there are a few barbs that keep it from stripping well. And you will remove them if, on their own, they do not remove themselves in the two or three first castings. And the more that you cast, the more you will do it neatly. And your mold will serve you more than one hundred times if it Is well governed. But it is good to soak it one night or one day before casting so that it be well soaked. The same must be done for fruits made from sugar. This wax is very soft & friendly & pliant, like copper. And if it is hard [this is] because of sulfur, which makes it melt more easily than than other [wax], so much that you can see evidence on a hot slate. And the sulfur that you put inside will be found the second time that you melt it, [as] cracks on the bottom. Having in this way passed through wax, it will not catch fire at all when put to a candle. And in this case, I believe that it will cast quite the medal [illegible]. One uses the same wax in place of varnish to [illegible].</ab>
<note id=“p140r_c1c”>
When your animal is cast, cut away the broth & superfluous things with a hot pen knife. And if you want, plait and wrap it around some stick or candle, put it in some hot water to soften and hold it in turning it around.</note>
<note id="p139v_c1d">
Lower the protrusions of the castings so that they be even & that the wax has more silver so that it can run all in one go without turning through the windings of the snake.</note>

BnF Ms Fr 640 169v "How to reduce a round form into a hollow one"

• mentions "sulphur mixed black wax" because "it does not leave anything in the mold and melts quickly"

tl_p169v.docx
__http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9059316c/f345.item__
Highly pewter-allied casting as bimbalotiers do
They mould with some paper or cardboard for the soft earth or metal would not mould so neatly and would not raise up so well. Or they fill with some Istre [AB2] stones the main area and the reverse is made of paper or cardboard.
How to reduce a round form into a hollow one
You have firstly to mould it with some plaster as aforesaid and cast some wax into the plaster with which you will get your relief that you will prepare very neat and will create it as you want. Then you will mould this wax reief again in some plaster or even better with some soaked sand like for a […] and cast into it some lead and you will get a very neat relief and i not ; mend it on some cement or other and make sure it is always well […] and you will use this one as a Template to make as many hollow ones as you want. In that way, put the half of your lead figure oiled and moistened with some brandy as aforesaid on your clay plaque, then mould this half with a white plaster. After being entangled and well making the plaster even, take your sulphur mixed black wax as aforesaid because it does not leave anything in the mold and melts quickly. Dip it into some hot urine and after being soften, press as a print on the half of the lead figure and it will be neatly hollowed. Adjust then the hollow wax in a square as you want, make sure it is thick enough and well even on each side and then mould this hollow wax and print on one side and flat and even on the other in the same way as you mould flat medals in wax or metal ones as core. And the core mould will give you in silver or other metal you wish a figure similar to the wax, that is to say flat and even on one side and hollow on the other. And after cleaning this hollow and withen it if it is made of metal, you can mix some sugar (Moulds)
Margin : after making a clay paste and pressing the half of the waxed figure slightly oiled to more easily take it off
The transparent wax is not good on the contrary to the thick one to make a good print
You can mould the other one as you have moulded it with plaster and wax

[AB1]gavent ?
[AB2]Istre is a town of the South East of France, near Marseille
[AB3]prepereras

BnF Ms. Fr. 640 140v "Casting of Lead and Tin in Plaster"

<title id=“p140v_a3”>Casting of lead and tin in plaster</title>



<ab id=“p140v_b3”>

If you want to cast some flat medal or some animal that is not very heavy, and that must not be burnt inside the mold, you can rather cast in plaster & brique mixed as above; and not in plaster alone, because it will shrink too much feeling a vehement fire if it is not kept from it. But, with the brick, it holds well. In any case, take heed to dry out your mold at length & on a soft fire & with patience, because it has no need of reheating. But when your work is of flowers or other things whose molds need to be reheated & fired, mix the plaster with some stone alum & also with filings. I have molded in plaster & brick very neatly & it has endured many castings.</ab>


<note id=“p140v_c3a”>

I tried the plaster & brick alone and molded en noyau with them as with the others. My mold was very clean, having lightly oiled my metal & rubbed it with spirits. I made my casting wide at the entrance, proceeding while making it thin just until the medal is quite slender. I changed the casting which had taken a good hold of the medal. I dried out the mold on a soft fire & at the end, let it really heat up without its turning red. I let it cool to such a degree that I could hold my finger to it without burning myself. I made a line of 4 ℥ of tin, ix deniers of lead. Afterwards I put with 4 ℥ of tin, xii deniers of lead. It is very good & fine.</note>



<note id=“p140v_c3b”>
When there is nothing to burn inside your mold, it is not necessary to reheat for lead and tin. But for flowers and that which must be burned yes indeed.</note>