‘Don’t do anything without planning’ is another rule. Especially when working on complicated or difficult pieces, every single step must be thought through. This minimises mistakes, dangers and repeated work. Furthermore, a principle of our craft is that we work our way from the rough to the finer tasks. First, surfaces are smoothed and stone is carved away to leave raised areas, while decoration, friezes and finishing touches come last. But as always, there are no rules without exceptions.

 After enough practice, a stonemason’s hands, ears and eyes are so well-trained that they can safely deviate from the rules mentioned above. Anyone who has enough experience and imagination has the power to create almost anything imaginable from stone.

Nowadays, pieces are generally only hand-finished by those learning the trade. The modern world, with its computer numerical control (CNC) machines, has found its way into our work. On one hand, this threatens the trade, because few people are able to train their hands over the years so as to attain true mastery. On the other hand, CNC machines are a great opportunity, because they allow forms of stone processing that open up a whole new world to us. In any case, far fewer new pieces are produced in Europe now than in earlier times, because stonemasons often have to prioritise restoration over original work.