A little something about Springstone

Most of our sculptures are made out of Springstone.

Here is a little something about Springstone. Enjoy :)

SPRINGSTONE:

Springstone is a very hard iron bearing Serpentine, which is grey in colour and

polishes black when a clear natural wax polish is applied.  It is found in the “Great Dyke”

which runs in a North Easterly direction and is approximately 550km long.  Concentrated

deposits of this highly sought after fine grained stone are to be found in and around 

Tengenenge, about 150km from Harare.

Springstone usually has a reddish brown outer layer.  This is the phenomena of the stone

being oxidised and returning to nature.  The oxidised section is considerably softer than the

heart of the stone.

Springstone is an ideal medium for sculpture.  It is very hard, close grained and polishes

to a very beautiful black colour without any fissures making it ideal for sculpture.

The name “Springstone” is said to have been given to the stone by John Takawira –

a famous first generation artist who passed away in 1989 - when the chisel he was

working with would spring back at him whilst working the stone.