On Thursday, our second to last day traveling throughout Tuscany, we went to Volterra. The first half of the day was spent touring the city by foot with our guide Corrine. After lunch and free time we had an appointment at an alabaster studio.
Alabaster is a type of stone with a hardness between chalk and marble. It is abundant in around Volterra, and makes for a great sculpting material. Intricate alabaster statues were scattered around the studio and a layer of white powder covered almost every surface. The owner of the studio gave us a background of the material. Three colors of alabaster are found around Volterra. Each color is a function of the minerals present when the rock begins to form during precipitation. This brief lecture was another cool bridge between geology (my major) and Italian!
The alabaster master then showed us a demo. He prepared a cube of alabaster by adhering it to a spinning machine. Then using tools at different angles and with different pressures, it became apparent that he was sculpting a bowl. After sanding the stone and lathering it in mineral oil it looked just like one of the bowls in his store sold for 10 euro.
Our visit to the alabaster studio was one of my favorite stops in Volterra. It was real cool to see a piece of art take shape right before my eyes. Bowls were not the extent of the artwork, there were huge statues obviously made with meticulous precision found all through out the studio and store. Definitely a very cool experience!! 
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