Lost-wax casting
Lost-wax casting is a metalworking process in which a wax model is enclosed in mold material, removed by heating, and replaced with molten metal.
Investment casting: Investment casting forms metal objects by pouring molten metal into a mold made from a disposable pattern. Lost-wax casting is the best-known form of this broader pattern-and-mold process.
Bronze Age: The Bronze Age was a period when bronze became a widely used material for tools, weapons, and objects. Lost-wax casting was practiced in several Bronze Age societies.
Jewelry: Jewelry comprises personal ornaments made from materials such as metals, gemstones, and glass. Lost-wax casting reproduces fine details in rings, pendants, and other metal ornaments.
Sand casting: Sand casting forms metal objects by pouring molten metal into a cavity shaped in sand. Unlike lost-wax casting, it uses a mold that is shaped directly rather than built around a wax model.
Mold: A mold is a shaped cavity or form used to give material a particular shape. Lost-wax casting uses a mold cavity left behind after the wax pattern is removed.
Wax pattern: A wax pattern is a temporary model of the object to be cast, used to shape the mold cavity. Its shape determines the metal casting's geometry and surface detail.
Indus Valley Civilization: The Indus Valley Civilization was an urban society centered in South Asia during the third millennium BCE. Its artisans used lost-wax casting for small bronze sculptures, including the Dancing Girl.
Dental casting: Dental casting forms metal dental restorations by pouring molten alloy into a mold. Lost-wax techniques have been used to produce crowns, inlays, and other precise restorations.
Die casting: Die casting forces molten metal under pressure into a reusable metal mold. Its permanent mold contrasts with the disposable mold and pattern used in lost-wax casting.
Foundry: A foundry is a workshop or factory where metal is melted and cast into shapes. The tools and controlled heating conditions for lost-wax casting are foundry practices.