Award for the Bards of Puget Sound
Bards of Caer Pugetia
2009 Competitive Eisteddfod
This award was commissioned by The Bards of Puget Sound
and awarded on October 17th 2009
Construction:
This 3 dimensional award piece took the better part of 30 hours to construct. It is made of various metals including reactive metals. The front and back frame are made of brass. The front frame is a circle with Awen’s Rays design as part of the it.
The background is made of pure titanium colored blue on one side and left in it’s natural state on the back where it is engraved.
The salmon, seaweed and salmon egg cluster is made of pure niobium which is a reactive metal like titanium but with a more workable temperament. The details are made using manual engraving tools.
The colors are created by precise masking and controlled oxidation using the reactive metals coloring machine I created in my lab.
The brass frame is notched to accommodate the niobium layer. Then all four layers are assembled together and riveted using rivets made from brass wire. The top two rivets also capture the 5th layer which is a new innovation of mine. The multi-function Bail. See images page.
The bail is a brass arc with a centering arm and two sterling silver rings. This bail can be used either with a cord on the brass arc or with a chain on the silver rings.