Side table depicting an owl is surrounded by different English garden birds entwined within a border of vines. Many different types of rare and exotic marbles and semi-precious stones were meticulously chosen for their colour and shading to imitate the birds' plumage. The pieces of stone are cut and precisely fitted together to make the birds appear like a painting. It is set in an American walnut base.
Length 56 cm
Width 46 cm
Height 67 cm
®Mark Williamson
®Mark Williamson
©Thomas Greenaway
©Thomas Greenaway
Thomas Greenaway
- Mosaic maker
- Towcester, United Kingdom
- Master Artisan
®Mark Williamson
A florentine art
- • Thomas masters the art of pietra dura
- • He is the only one to practise it in the UK
- • He wishes to share this rare knowledge
As a student, Thomas Greenaway travelled to Italy and discovered the art of pietra dura, a traditional 16th century technique using coloured stones to create images; it is sometimes referred to as Florentine mosaic. Following this discovery, he later went back to Italy to train with masters by joining two family run studios as an apprentice, an experience he feels honoured to have lived. He is now one of the very few craftspeople to master pietra dura in the United Kingdom and the only one to produce it. From games tables to boxes and wall panels, his work is as varied as it is recognised for its fine craftsmanship. In 2015, his excellence was confirmed when he was asked to create the Coat of Arms for Richard III’s tombstone in Leicester Cathedral.
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Photo: ©Thomas Greenaway
Garden bird table
Photo: ©Thomas Greenaway
Chess/backgammon table
Designed to rotate to become either a chess or backgammon table, this table has a polychromatic effect that makes for a dramatic piece of furniture. The border is made from very hard Egyptian porphyry, a stone that is both extremely valuable, rare and hard to work; amongst other stones including lapis-lazuli, amethyst, jaspers and mounted on a walnut and burr base.
Length 83 cm
Width 83 cm
Height 73 cm
Photo: ©Thomas Greenaway
Angelfish jewellery box
A jewellery box with a Pietra Dura panel lid. Central to the panel is a lifelike Angelfish which has a Lapis-Lazuli head, Alabaster body, fins of Agate and Lapis. This is swimming between the coral for which red Jasper is used, all set within a black Belgium marble background. Using traditional techniques, the pieces are hand cut and precisely inlaid using bees wax and pine resin glue. Finished to a high polish.
Length 19 cm
Width 14.5 cm
Height 7.5 cm
Photo: ©Thomas Greenaway
Baby owl panel
This striking contemporary design inspired by the American artist Richard Blow, shows a baby owl staring directly at the viewer. The black Lilla with white veins is used for the sky to imitate a dramatic lightning storm. The owl is perched on a branch of Paesina stone with Verde antico mountains in the distance.
Length
Height 16 cm
Width 12.5 cm
Photo: ©Thomas Greenaway
Richard III coat of arms
Richard III's coat of arms for the tombstone in Leicester Cathedral in Pietra Dura. Over 250 pieces of valuable brightly coloured precious stones were used in the shield and each lions head has 19 pieces of stone and are only about 1cm tall. It took over 2 months work to design and make this shield entirely using traditional Florentine Pietra Dura techniques used during the Renaissance.
Height 25 cm
Width 21.5 cm
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