or rushes that in their natural growth had picked up silicates, were the
norm until the arrival of accurately graded glasspaper. Glasspaper of a
sort was available in the eighteenth century, but it must have been coarse
or inconsistent, as Sheraton’s Cabinet Dictionary(1803) states that its use
was followed by rubbing with rushes.
In an almost undocumented field, that of the woodworking trades before
the eighteenth century, it has been necessary to pick up information from
a wide variety of sources not originally intended as technical treatises. In
this task the author has been greatly helped by the observations recorded
by Norman E. Muller, Elliot M. Sayward, and other members of the
Tool and Trades History Society and of the Early American Industries
Association. The author is also indebted to Elliot M. Sayward for drawing
attention to the illustrations that are used in Figure 7.
Heine, G.
1984 An historically important woodwork joint. Tools and Trades( Journal of the Tool and
Trades History Society) 2:29–45.
Muller, N. E.
1993 Some medieval carpentry tools and techniques.Chr onicle of the Early American Industries
Association46(4):98–108.
Roubo, J. A.
1769 L’art du menuisier. P aris: Académie Royale des Sciences.
Sheraton, T.
1803 TheCabinet Dictionary. London.
References
Acknowledgments
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