Sculpture Information

When I saw the incredible form of the Argonaut Egg case in a photograph, I knew instantly fitted perfectly into a white Alabaster block at my workshop. A match! Always a good sign the piece will be a good one.

Firstly, I found and cut out the profile of the egg case in the alabaster. After sanding it down to a smooth finish I began to hollow out the middle. I used boring tool heads to achieve this. Then I purchased a Die Grinder to smooth out the interior. I then pencilled in the complex flow of lines on the shell and chiselled them out, smoothing them off with a Dremel. The alabaster egg case looks great with an interior light.

Female Argonauts or Octopi secrete calcium carbonate and create these wonderful Eggcases. The female argonaut is eight times larger than the male. Once they have mated, the male escapes, and the female keeps the baby Argonauts inside the eggcase. The eggcase traps an air pocket and floats. They were named Argonauts as they thought the flaps on their tentacles were sails!!!