Why Is the Surface So Shiny? How Is the Stone Polished?
After a stone is shaped, chiseled and rasped, the artists hand-sand the surface with wet sandpaper. (Before sandpaper, artists would use river sand and a rag in their hands to sand the surface smooth). At first, the polish used was a plant or vegetable oil. Then, later, other polishing techniques evolved, included “firing the stone” and applying layers of wax, usually carnuba or beeswax. This particular technology was solely innovated in Zimbabwe, and is not used anywhere else, as far as we know!
