What is a Lithophane

The Greek origin of the work means "light in stone" or to "appear in stone".

How beautifully this describes these corian carvings which, in ambient light, seem only to be bumpy surfaces forming a vague picture, and there is really nothing to see. But, when the ambient light is extinguished and the lithophane is back-lit, a beautiful, three-dimensional picture appears in incredible depth and detail.

Popular in Europe in the mid-19th Century, lithophanes began their life as a thin sheet of beeswax.  Artisans carved the pictures in the wax, a plaster-of-Paris mold was made from the wax carving and the porcelain slip was poured in this mold to dry.  Removed from the mold, the porcelain was then fired.  Where the picture is the lightest, the porcelain is very thin, and where it is darkest, the porcelain is very thick.

They functioned as candle shields, night lights, lampshades, fire screens, veilleuse-théières (tea warmers) and were hung in windows to catch the light.

 Today "Memories in Light" utilizes corian solid surface material to achieve the same effect. Corian is not unbreakable, but is much stronger then porcelain.