Metals Used to Make Sculptures

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Certain metals have been employed throughout recorded history to make decorative and fine art products.  In fact, by the first century AD the following metals that are in prime use today already had a long history of development that originated 10,000 years earlier with the use of copper, silver, iron, lead, tin, copper, and gold.

Stated differently, the distinction between base metals (tin, copper, lead, and iron) and precious metals (silver, gold, and --and since the 18th century, platinum) was made by the ancient civilizations of prehistoric Europe and the Middle East. 

Silver and Gold Jewelry and Ceremonial Trappings 

Regarding the historical progression in the creation of metal-based products, silver and gold were first used for the jewelry and ceremonial trappings of royalty such as priests, kings, chieftains, and pharaohs. 

As these precious metals became more abundant, moreover, warriors and nobility were next in line to enjoy products made from gold and silver. 

The use of these metals eventually made their way to the more general populace with more functional items such as drinking and eating utensils, mirrors, chairs, beds, and lighting stands. 

Eventually attaining a quantitative value, silver and gold were used as coins in the 7th century BC.

As far as the base metals are concerned, bronze and iron, because of their strength, were used for tools and weapons. 

Lead, tin, and copper, due to their durability and utility, on the other hand, were used for storage, cooking, and for reinforcing wooden items. 

Metal Alloys Were Used By Ancient Civilizations

The fact that metals can be combined as alloys, which in turn resulted in more optimal materials geared for specific purposes, was known by ancient civilizations.  For instance, the realization that tin and lead combined to produce pewter and that tin and copper when combined produced bronze has been known and in many respects improved upon for more than 2,000 years. 

Whereas iron, copper, lead, silver, and gold are still commonly used today, nearly every metallic product is, in fact, a highly complex and carefully formulated alloy. For the purposes of the fine and decorative arts, however, metals have been used either in their simple state or in less complex alloys such as bronze, brass, and pewter. 

As far as outdoor metal sculptures are concerned, all of the following metals are used:  gold, silver, lead, platinum, copper, tin, iron, bronze, brass, steel, pewter, stainless steel, black oxide, as well as different combinations of these metals (alloys). 

The Life-Size Bronze Figures of the Greeks

All of the great civilizations of the ancient world created bronze art products usually after first using it in the production of weapons. It is worth pointing out that the Greeks were the first to make their bronze figures life-size.  Whereas very few Greek bronze cast works still exist, however, many more Roman bronze sculptures and statues have endured. 

The Lost Wax Technique

During the many years of Egyptian dynastic art, thousands upon thousands of bronze figurines were created via the lost wax technique.  To the present day, thousands of  Egyptian bronze figurines are presently on display in museum collections throughout the world.  From these origins, bronze sculptural art has continued to prosper up to the present time.

The metal most frequently used for sculptures is bronze.  Bronze is durable, very strong,  and hard and consequently allows more design flexibility than is possible with stone or wood.  Since it does not easily break under stress and is corrosion resistant, bronze is easily formed into finished products via molding, casting, or machining.   

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