At the time of the Renaissance, some peculiar coffers entered Spain, originally carved in Germany and Italy, to which drawers were added. These pieces of furniture are the cabinets that, made with noble woods and decorated with carvings and inlays, take center stage among the furnishings of their time. In the Zamorano workshop of Adolfo Mateos, the artisan technique of manufacturing cabinets with first quality woods, fittings and the use and treatment of bones as ornamentation elements continues to be worked. "I am going to decapitate, which is to cut the outer parts of the bone, so that the fat that is inside comes out and the bone remains white" "Now we are going to cook them so that they lose the fat so that they are very white" "They have to be about three hours. And then when they are already cooked, the inside of the cane is removed and more or less there are left to saw them " " Well, three hours have passed and now I am going to remove the water and fat. " What I am doing is remove the last remaining remains and you have to tap it so that what remains inside the hole comes out, which is where there is more fat ” “ Well, all the bones are clean, and now we are going to saw them ” Because of their tenacity As well as its flexibility when wet, bone is a widely used material in the decoration of cabinets. To be used later in the inlay, Adolfo saws both the woods and the bones into thin strips called fillets. In the same saw and using a board as a squaring machine, the craftsman prepares the cherry boards that will form the body of the cabinet. In the 16th and 17th centuries the bargueños industry had its heyday and was located in the Toledo town of Bargas, where the origin of its name is referred to. Since then, the ornamentation of the cabinet is based on geometric figures and floral and fauna motifs decorated with inlays, inlays or gold baths. The cabinet structure is usually made up of walnut or cherry wood assembled together. "It's called a false square: it is a square that can be moved and you can put it however you want" The loops or dovetails are trapezoidal-shaped joints that fit the pieces together. With the hammer and chisel Adolfo cuts the excess wood from the ties at the ends of the four boards that make up the piece of furniture. "Now I am going to fit the two parts of ties that I have made to join the tables" One of the most characteristic features of the cabinets are the drawers and drawers. These drawers, when opening and closing, run through the so-called channels: some lateral recesses that the craftsman marks, saws and carves with the hammer and chisel to ensure the route. "I'm putting paper to draw some lines where the bone is going to be embedded" "This type of cabinet has three types of pieces: rhombuses, triangles and squares. Triangles for circular shapes; the diamonds for between the fillets; and the squares for the front edges. ” The meticulous process of cutting and shaping the bone pieces takes place throughout the entire inlay. The craftsman uses the hammer and the burin to open the holes where he will place, one by one, the bone ornaments. "I am going to draw these pieces to embed them in the interior part of the cabinet lid" Although the geometric figures may be simple due to their shape, the profiling of the floral motifs requires great skill in handling the hair saw and the subsequent lowering of the wood. "Now I'm going to put glue on it and I'm going to hammer in the pieces" "Well, I'm embedding the boxwood fillets. For there first to make a split with gouges and chisels and then enter the filetillo with the hammer "" Also good wetting them when they are sites with lots curve is well moisten to double best steaks "This technique of embedding pieces of bone or any wood on top of another is called inlay and the Arabic Tarsi voice refers us to its origins. "First the bone pieces are drawn and then with the burin it is passed over it so that a slit remains and then with the wax the drawing we want is marked" In the carving of the ornamentation all the details are taken care of. Even the reliefs of the floral motifs are worked precisely so that there is no lack of detail. Inlaid requires extensive sanding to smooth out the different protruding surfaces on the embedded parts. "Now I am giving the second coat of sandpaper, fine sandpaper by hand, in circles so that no scratches are noticeable" Once the outside of the cabinet is sanded, Adolfo prepares to place the fittings. "Now I am placing the side handles of the cabinet" The irons that adorn the cabinet also receive a special treatment since they are motifs that enhance the beauty of the cabinet. The handles, hinges, nails, handles and corner pieces are the product of artistic blacksmithing. “This stone is a normal, ordinary slate stone, to which a little oil is added to make the tool slide better when it is seated. This is the final finish of the sharpening so that the cut is very lively ” Adolfo marks the boxes where he will place the wrought iron hinges which, in this case, have to be edged so as not to damage the inlays of the inlaid. "We have put the hinges in the box and now we are going to make the boxes to place them on the lid" In an effort to beautify the piece, the hinges are held by some nails used in the blacksmithing of horses that have been forged the head. Something as simple as nailing a nail becomes before the cabinet a blunting, riveting and countersinking process, which hides the heads of the tips by embedding them in the piece. "Now I'm going to adjust the lock and nail it" Between the hardware the lock sticks out. Fixed to the front of the cabinet, in addition to serving to open or close the lid with the key set, it is a center of attention to take care of aesthetically. "Now we polish the burrs that have come out of the wood and the iron so that everything is well polished" The drawers are the characteristic that originally differentiated the cabinets from the chests. Its assembly is a small-scale repetition of the process carried out with the external woods: boards assembled by ties, fronts in inlaid with bone inlays, and trim strips. "Now I am going to introduce the separations of the drawers" The next thing we are going to do is place the backrest " " Once the box and the drawers have been sanded, we are going to make caustic soda to give the entire furniture so that the burned wood remains and a old tone ” Caustic soda has similar properties to highly concentrated bleach. When applied on wood, it produces slight burns with which the desired effect is achieved. "Now I am going to turn some legs of the furniture called onions and that go to the bottom part" "I am putting oil on the shaft where the wood turns so it does not burn" To turn Adolfo uses basically three types of tools: the large gouge for roughing, another smaller gouge for the small circles and the turning chisel. "Well, they are already turned, now we are going to sand them first and then we are going to give them metal scourer so that they are completely polished" "Good, now they are already well polished and I am going to give them the soda so that they catch the same tone as the cabinet " " Now I am cleaning the soda with water because if the soda is left there on the wood it turns white later. Then after soda burned wood, should be cleaned with water "the drawers also receive soda bath that will transform the lighter shade of cherry wood in a golden tone." If you become soda there, then permeation of and after giving the wax would turn the wood whitish " Onions is the name by which these turned legs that support the structure of the cabinet are known. "I'm doing holes to place the onions" "You are made holes and now let's cut the onions to glue them " "I'm giving glue into the holes and then give the estibos to glue onions" The subject of the legs the cabinet is made by means of the glue. It does not need major reinforcements since the weight of the furniture presses the socket. Once the onions have been placed, the craftsman has to finish the fittings. "I'm making holes in the drawers to put the handles" "These handles are called scissors and are made of cut and openwork sheet metal" "I'm bending the tips of the sideburns so that the tip enters the wood and the handle " " Now I'm going to make the hole to put the door handle " The corner pieces are made of perforated sheet metal and, although decorative, they fulfill an eminently practical function by protecting the entire frame of the furniture from blows. The last process in making a cabinet is waxing and polishing, for which Adolfo uses a particular method. "Now I'm giving you the wax, which is beeswax with white spirit and a little yellow linyl." The back is coated with Judean bitumen wax. On the front, the waxing covers the pores of the wood, protects it and, when the wax is dry, it is rubbed with a cloth and acquires a striking shine. "We have already given it the wax, and now we only have to wait a few hours for it to dry to rub it and the furniture is finished" Adolfo Mateos has shown us the meticulous elaboration of a Spanish cabinet similar to those that had their heyday in the 16th and 17th centuries. Walnut and cherry, drawers and drawers, inlaid ... a combination of woods, accessories and techniques that have made cabinets highly valued pieces in the international art furniture market.
