Damascus steel creates a unique look, but it's too expensive and labor intensive for some pieces. And, many metals can't be worked like the steels used in traditional Damascus. Here's an alternative that engravers may consider by creating a similar pattern that gives a Damascus-inspired look....

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Eberhard Mach is a jeweler, stone setter, and jewelry arts teacher in Muenster, Germany. His style is a subtle combination of traditional elements complemented by innovative features. ...

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Many experienced engravers, including Lee Griffiths and Bob Finlay, agree that metal sculpting takes quite a bit of time. However, it is worth it – this method of engraving is greatly admired by collectors and engravers....

Continue with Engraved Microblock: Riding into the West »

What do the letters A, B, C, E, G, H, and S have in common? When it comes to designing a monogram, these are the easiest letters to bring together for most people. The other 19 letters give many engravers and designers trouble when creating a beautiful monogram....

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As more and more people learn skills such as engraving and stone setting, beautiful artwork is being created and shared daily. Such passionate artists are stretching into new worlds of creativity, many of which are based on old world traditions and methods....

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Scrolls are a very natural occurrence. You can find them in plants and animals all over the world, so it's no wonder that humans try to recreate them in art. Most engravers study long and hard to understand all the ways and styles of constructing this natural beauty. One such style that is quite common among engravings is the English Scroll....

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Firearm engravings can range from large, simple scrolls to ornate inlays and overlays, fancy scrollwork, and intricate scenes. An exquisite example of a complex firearm engraving is this “Dragon Gun” by Lee Griffiths....

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Whether on a piece of paper or a sheet of metal, practicing layout and design skills is important at any level. Creating flowing scrolls, leaves, and vines can lead to developing a new style that is unique....

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Jeff Minor, a versatile craftsman from Salmon, Idaho, has been engraving for eleven years. He started to engrave almost as a business necessity to complement his leather work. Since then, he has been purposely improving and broadening his skills so that he can branch out into other areas and add new clients....

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Since she first learned about engraving, Dorothy Funk has taken several courses at the GRS Training Center working toward her personal goal of becoming a more advanced engraver. She's taken a Basic Western Engraving course with Diane Scalese, and recently the new the Transition Course: Flare & Bright Cut Engraving on Silver to Steel taught by Ron Smith and Diane Scalese. ...

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Engravers, wood carvers, and stone setters are drawn to creative handwork, perhaps more than other artists. And, they are constantly seeking different opportunities to make something beautiful....

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Artistic endeavors like this engraved pendant can give a renewed sense of peace during a tough time in life....

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Most of the time you'll find a nice scroll pattern engraved on the side of a shotgun or carved on a wood gunstock. However, this November the office of Glendo / GRS had a unique piece of artwork decorating the front lobby: an "engraved" pumpkin!...

Continue with An Engraving-Inspired Decoration for Fall »

James “Bruce” Meek, author of The Art of Engraving, was working on his second book The Engraver and His Designs when he passed away many years ago. Bruce had already made several engraved illustrations for this second book in the same manner he used for his first book: by engraving a black acrylic sheet painted with white lacquer. ...

Continue with The Meek Squirrel by James B. Meek »

This beautiful bulino work was done by 21-year-old Jake Newell, an Emporia State University student. With less than a year of experience, Jake is creating high-quality artwork and learning very quickly. He has only had two semesters of engraving courses at ESU and is working toward a degree in education....

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Glass engraving, like a bulino scene in metal, can tell a story that is as beautiful as a painting yet refreshingly different in important ways. One freedom glass artists enjoy is creating original glass work and then engraving it. So, unlike other engravers, glass artists can have greater creative control of the work piece before the engraving begins. This example is by Emporia State University student Evan Markowitz....

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Learning is exciting, especially as you discover new techniques and improve your skill with every cut. This bracelet features the word "Learn" created by a wonderful combination of engraving and stone setting. It's a beautiful example of how engravers and jewelers can build new business and artistic opportunity by combining these complementary skills....

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Here is the next step in Bob Finlay's impressive Engraved Microblock. In July and September 2007, we showed the two early stages of the block. The stage in September described how to lay out a scene – this step shows the finished result of that process....

Continue with Engraved Microblock: Progression from Layout to Sculpting »

"The Beginning of Life" is a magnificent art jewelry piece crafted by Alexandre Sidorov, an acclaimed stone setter and instructor in Antwerp, Belgium. This striking designer pendant exhibits advanced jewelry techniques executed flawlessly. It is truly a one-of-a-kind....

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Much like the attendees of the 2006 Grand Masters course with Creative Art, these 2007 GMP students benefit from a team of instructors. This week the students get a double shot of engraving knowledge from two well-known engravers from across the Atlantic. ...

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Week 1 of the twelve-day Grand Masters Program began on Monday, October 8th in Emporia, Kansas. Throughout the day, students eagerly and intently listened to 2007 Grand Masters Instructor Winston Churchill. ...

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Numerous authorities, collectors and engravers consider Winston Churchill the greatest American engraving artist to date. He quietly creates his remarkable beauty on the same Vermont farm where he was born and still resides today. His total artistic dedication to detail and accuracy is more than well-known; it's how he captures and preserves an elegant part of America in his extraordinary engravings....

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At the age of 15, Ken Hunt began what would be an incredible journey of discovery and innovation. He took the first step as an apprentice to James Purdey & Sons in London with outworker Harry Kell....

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Nearing the end of the first week of the Third Annual Grand Masters Program, the students are quiet and focused. With such serious students one can expect to see some serious advancement. The work featured here is a contrast between using traditional tools and pneumatic ones. Although both are different, these students are quickly adding value to their skills through this class....

Continue with The End of Week One - Grand Masters 2007 »

As Grand Masters 2007 comes to a close, one can find some impressive advancements being made with these twelve engravers. Practice plates lined with small English scroll look better and better from one day to the next....

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Many people - collectors included - love the bold elegance and style of sculpted metal. That look, however, can be a bit cost-prohibitive at times. ...

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Much like cutting metal, wood engraving can be very challenging and rewarding. This jewelry box was engraved by professional woodcarver Bill Janney. Bill retired from General Motors as a professional trainer. His love of woodcarving and the desire to teach it led him to write the successful book Gunstock Carving, as well as create instructional videos on fish scale and basket weave pattern carving. ...

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In July 2007, we presented the first step for this high-relief engraving by Robert L. “Bob” Finlay on his GRS Microblock engraving project. Here's the next step....

Continue with Engraved Microblock: One Way to Create a Scene Layout »

James “Bruce” Meek considered Don A. Glaser a friend and a fellow engraver, although Don’s engraving was a hobby and not equal to the work done by top professionals. Still, Don clearly had good graver control and metal working skills. The problem for him, like many engravers, was often design....

Continue with A Special Lesson for a Friend »

Graver shape determines much of an engraved piece's overall look and feel. A square graver narrowed to less than 90 degrees (80, for example) is excellent for fine bulino scenes because the narrow cuts reflect less light giving the engraved image a wide range of gray tones for good contrast....

Continue with Silver Bracelets (Part 4) »

People from around the world take courses in the GRS Training Center. Sometimes students enroll together: a father and son, husband and wife, or a couple of friends...but twelve all at once! That's exactly what happened in August 2007 when an eager group from Paris, Texas filled their own GRS basic engraving course....

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These custom spurs were commissioned by a collector from Diane Scalese. The customer's only instructions were to use an "eagle and snake" theme, and he wanted them to be fancy. ...

Continue with How a Design is Chosen »

Some people can be apprehensive about using their own artwork for engraving, especially if they question their artistic ability. Improving one's drawing and layout skill is an essential and ongoing pursuit, but there are extensive copyright-free art resources to help anyone produce nice engraving results. Even top engravers use these, and for good reasons....

Continue with Using Art Resources Creatively (Part 2) »

Ron Smith and Diane Scalese call it Flare & Bright Cut engraving. The result is incredible three-dimensional beauty with a minimum of strategic cuts. It’s about freshness and efficiency. It’s rewarding to engrave because it lets you transform metal into sculpted designs in less time than you ever thought possible. Clients and collectors love the artistic boldness and the creative difference of this style....

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The reasons a person becomes an engraver, jeweler or stone setter are many and varied. Some, like Charles Schreck, engrave just for fun and personal satisfaction, not as a job. Others, like Ashton Ludden discover this art form by chance and then choose to make a living from it. Those who take the professional path find creative and rewarding challenges in everyday work. One unique story is about a young jewelery apprentice from Cambridge, England....

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Once you learn Western Bright Cut engraving, you can turn a flat piece of silver into a sparkling bracelet, or a blank metal oval into a unique belt buckle. In cowboy country like Montana or Texas, Western style engraving is a recognized favorite with collectors and customers....

Continue with Silver Bracelets (Part 3) »

Rewarding, relaxing, alive with personal growth...these are what many people seek in their hobby. Now, more of us are turning to the art of engraving as a creative and fulfilling hobby. With innovative tools and techniques now shared so freely, people around the world can add this wonderful tradition to their life, even part time. Years ago this was difficult or even impossible; today it's clearly achievable even for those who aren't natural artists....

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April 2007 introduced the challenge of partnering with another artist to help an engraver translate a photographic image into a more engravable drawing. June's Featured Photos #25-2 showcased a partial engraving based on the client's pet. Now, this beautiful pendant is complete....

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People start engraving at different times in life and for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it is to begin a new hobby, make a career change, or quite by accident. Ashton Ludden, a twenty-one year old college student working toward her BFA at Emporia State University, happened to be at the right university at the right time. ...

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If you are a leatherworker, maybe you have been thinking about how you can increase the value of your work. A great option is to add metal engraving to it! Metal engraving is a simple way to add some shiny and sparkling — and not to mention unique — ornaments to your leatherwork....

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A beautiful metal surface comes to mind when many people think engraving. But for a Fine Arts senior at Emporia State University, glass is his workpiece. Twenty-three year old artist Evan Markowitz first fell in love with glass blowing in high school, and decided glass would be his lifelong passion. Now, Evan has been adding to his creativity in glass by engraving it. ...

Continue with Engraving Loves More than Metal »

A great resource that even experienced designers, engravers, and artists use in their work is copyright-free artwork. Most collections include hundreds, if not thousands, of examples from time periods ranging from Art Deco to Ancient Babylonian art. Not only are these images great for study, engraving artists can start with these designs and make them unique with changes from subtle to extensive. ...

Continue with Using Art Resources Creatively (Part 1) »

Years ago, any image printed made use of a plate engraved by hand. Although technology has replaced such traditional printing methods in the commercial world, making intaglio prints from your engravings is a great way to reproduce your work....

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Trumpet style yelpers. Tube calls. Scratch boxes. Most people wouldn't think of these hunting aids as beautiful, but a creative man from Lebanon, Illinois has turned his turkey calls into works of functional art. Don Bald, who is retired from 38 years of teaching high school Shop and English, has made them by hand for the last 20 years — 12 of which he called "serious"....

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This exquisite silver bracelet, engraved by Diane Scalese, is an excellent example of Western Bright Cut engraving. As mentioned in Silver Bracelets Part 1, many engravers prefer to engrave these bracelets flat and then form them afterward; these photos were obviously taken before the bracelet was formed. One way to form them is with the GRS Metal Former (#004-725), which is actually based on a tool built years ago by Bob & Diane Scalese for Diane's growing business. ...

Continue with Silver Bracelets (Part 2) »

For the past few decades, Grand Master Engraver Ron Smith has been recognized and known for his firearms and knife engraving. Many people who admire Ron’s work think of him as a steel engraver, which he certainly is. But that’s not all Ron does and it’s not how he got started — he began in the jewelry trade. ...

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An Engraved Tribute to a U.S. Air Force Pilot...

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Engravers may do some questionable things at times, perhaps just for the challenge or something new to try....

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Engravers constantly face the challenge of creating a design that will flow and please the eye. For new engravers this challenge becomes even harder with the introduction of small spaces, such as the handle of this custom knife....

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Robert L. “Bob” Finlay loves to do deep, sculpted engraving, and he is a natural at it. One of his latest projects is this GRS Microblock model made especially to be engraved....

Continue with Engraved Microblock: A High Relief Work-in-Progess »

It's great to work on a new project that brings the opportunity to break out of the norm. At times, firearms engravers routinely engrave one gun after another. As a result, they can find themselves thinking about doing something different to keep their creative juices and the fun factor flowing....

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A common design challenge for engravers is leaves. No matter how well a leaf is shaded, it's overall beauty and visual impact depends considerably on proper artistic structure. Here is an excerpt from Ron Smith's book Drawing & Understanding Scroll Designs for Artists, Engravers, and Collectors where he discusses line relationships and leaves....

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Monograms and initials are a traditional bedrock skill for engravers and jewelers. Clients naturally want their personal identification engraved on important things, so monogramming and lettering provide an instant opportunity. ...

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There are extraordinary jewelers and stone setters who have the talent and ambition to push the field of stone setting and jewelry making to new levels. Russian-born Jura is one of them. ...

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Annually, as part of the Atlanta Blade Show & International Cutlery Fair, Blade Magazine hosts a special knife cutting competition. The 1st place prize for 2007 was a belt buckle engraved by Christian DeCamillis....

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If ever you have an opportunity to spend time with Augustino “Augie” LoPrinzi, you will meet a man worth meeting. And you may learn a few tips for enjoying life — not by sitting around relaxing, but by doing something with your hands....

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The engraving design you see here is elegant, clearly complements the knife's design, and is gracefully simple. At times, some engravers over complicate their design which may detract from the harmony of the finished piece. ...

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James “Bruce” Meek, author of the book The Art of Engraving, made many of his own tools, including engraving vises. This was his last design and has a special feature for microscope work....

Continue with James B. Meek’s “Positioning Vise” »

Featured Photos #15-1 shown in April 2007 presented the opportunity and the challenge of engraving a client’s dog with the help of another artist to help translate a photographic image into a more engravable drawing....

Continue with Partner with Another Artist (Part 2) »

Some clients want a personal object or symbol captured on a piece, such as a favorite hunting dog on a gun or a family crest on a ring. This type of engraving job can be quite different and challenging. ...

Continue with Engraving a Crest Signet Ring »

A type of folk art dating back centuries, scrimshaw is a unique form of engraving. Traditionally, scrimshaw work was colored using only black or dark ink, but now some scrimshanders use an array of color which opens this classic art to more creative possibilities....

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Laurie Brown loves art, working with jewelry, and engraving. Years ago, she had trouble finding someone who would openly teach her to engrave. Just outside the Baltimore, Maryland area, Laurie has now been working under engraver Alan Binder at Smyth Jewelers for the past few years. She is serious about engraving and her work shows it....

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Engraver Michael Dubber is proficient in both firearms and jewelry. He has professionally engraved hundreds of silver bracelets in various patterns over the years. Mike works in a variety of styles including Bright Cut (Western) style. He is known to blend elements of Western silver engraving with gun engraving elements to create designs that appeal to a wide range of people. ...

Continue with Silver Bracelets (part 1) »

This engraved inscription “For the Love of The Art” is a statement in two ways: first, it’s beautifully engraved in an elegant style that honors engraving by execution; second, the words themselves express the engraver’s passion for the art....

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A great way to add more fun, and if you are a professional engraver, to also broaden your client base is to embrace different artistic themes. This stainless steel tag (GRS part 003-301) can be used as a key chain or a pendant. When a tribal art design is used instead of more traditional scroll designs, it instantly changes the result and appeal....

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Jewelers and stone setters refer to closely spaced stones as being set “girdle to girdle.” In theory, stones can’t be set any closer than when their girdles are actually touching. But, that’s if the girdles are at the same height....

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Magnus Jensen, a top Swedish goldsmith, stone setter and teacher, sent this interesting example of a wedding band he recently set with 1.4mm Flanders Cut diamonds....

Continue with Beads Don’t Have to be Round »

Rex Pedersen, a professional American engraver, loves to engrave English Scroll. Perhaps just for fun (or was there a real need for this, Rex?), he engraved a nice miniature English Scroll pattern on a practice plate. ...

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Todd Daniels is an engraver, artist and jeweler. Like many of us, his work priority is often driven by the business reality of paying the bills, but sometimes it’s driven by the art itself....

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Jake Newell, a 21-year-old Emporia State University student, engraved this bulino likeness in memory of his very special hunting dog Dakota. Jake was actually working on his Education major when he became intrigued by ESU's new Engraving Arts program. ...

Continue with In Memory of Dakota: An Amazing Piece of Student Work »

Do top professional engravers still do practice plates? Of course, but they are obviously different from what many of us call practice plates....

Continue with Ken C. Hunt's “Practice Plate” »

Most of us agree that shading lines are narrower and finer than other engraving cuts. Have you ever wondered just how fine shading lines are?...

Continue with How Fine is Fine Line Shading? »

This stainless steel Buck knife was engraved with a technique that produces an almost sculpted look but uses only graver cuts (no actual sculpting). The result is bolder and more time efficient than many line engraving techniques, and a surprising number of clients really like it. This technique lets engravers offer a relatively generous amount of coverage at an attractive price. . .while making good money per engraving hour....

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Pets are hugely popular, and this is a nice opportunity for beginning engravers who often look for worthwhile projects that are not too big or complicated. Professional engravers love a fun break from their normal jobs and the chance for some easy extra income....

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Here are some hints. He learned engraving in Belgium, starting at the age 13; he is now 76. This photo was taken in February, 2007, at the home of his good friend and former engraving student, Philippe Grifnée....

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The artistic ability of metal engravers varies widely. Scrolls, leaves, borders, letters, and other geometric elements are one thing, but engraving pets and people are another....

Continue with Partner with Another Artist (Part 1) »

The GRS Training Center in Emporia, Kansas, opened its 2007 schedule with a Basic Engraving course taught by Rex Pedersen. Rex loves to teach and purposely makes time for it in a very busy schedule. He is a third generation gunsmith, professional engraver and president of FEGA, the Firearms Engravers Guild of America. ...

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Coin carving, especially the American Nickel used in the folk art called Hobo Nickels, is fascinating and ever-changing. Kansas engraver and carver Robert “Bob” Finlay does this so naturally, it’s amazing....

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We’ve all seen extreme behavior before, but the never-ending pursuit of creative adventure can cause an unexpected progression that borders the extreme. ...

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David Drake is a machinist with a special connection to the world of engraving. During the week, he programs and operates one of Glendo's most sophisticated machines, an integrated multi-axis turning/milling center that produces GRS handpiece parts and a lot more. Dave went to work at Glendo with no interest in metal engraving whatsoever, but that's changed....

Continue with Machinist Enjoys Metal Engraving Hobby »

This brass disk, marked 1879, is about 1.7" (43mm) in diameter. It was possibly a sample piece used to demonstrate engraving ability, perhaps for a client. The work piece size and lettering suggest it was related to pocket watches. The two sides are quite different. One side has some extraordinary lettering in a variety of styles including the repeated name, "Elgin Nat'l Watch Co."...

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This stainless steel pendant was Bulino engraved with no intention of ever using it as a "plate" for printmaking. However, when an Emporia State University art student Michelle Parkman saw it, she was excited to see what could be done with such a small and highly detailed engraving (the actual pendant is only 1" wide). Michelle, an experienced intaglio print maker, used a warm black ink to produce the stunningly detailed print you see here....

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Ralph Bone, a respected engraver, stock maker, gunsmith and teacher, passed away in late 2006 at the age of 77. He will always be remembered as an extraordinary craftsman and artist, as well as a kind, humble person. ...

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This sterling silver jeweler's loupe (which began as GRS Loupe #011-480) was decorated by Alexandre Sidorov of Antwerp, Belguim, and Chris DeCamillis during the 2007 Inhorgenta Exhibition in Munich, Germany....

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