Take a close look at this. This is a close-up shot of the kind of painstaking detail that went into the project that took 10 years, and recovering from a stroke that has left him without any feeling in one hand, to complete.
The Declaration of Independence, meticulously and accurately carved out of dark walnut, right down to the last flourish and detail of John Hancоck's paraph, and affixed to a light-colored Baltic Birch "page."
Setting aside all the human interest angles on 81-year old Charlie Kested himself - senior citizen, veteran Navy pattern and model-maker, industrial arts teacher, craftsman, stroke survivor - the piece itself is a truly remarkable object.
He won First Place in the Florida State Fair. Golly. And he will keep it in his home as a family heirloom, amongst a bazillion other remarkable objects he's made over the years, despite the fact that, IMHO, it belongs in the rotunda of our Nation's Capitol building, or the Smithsonian, or on a national tour. It's a story that belongs somewhere besides buried deep within the Internet on woodworking Blogs , I can tell you that.
He hopes to have the Gettysburg Address completed for next year's State Fair.
The Declaration of Independence, meticulously and accurately carved out of dark walnut, right down to the last flourish and detail of John Hancоck's paraph, and affixed to a light-colored Baltic Birch "page."
Setting aside all the human interest angles on 81-year old Charlie Kested himself - senior citizen, veteran Navy pattern and model-maker, industrial arts teacher, craftsman, stroke survivor - the piece itself is a truly remarkable object.
He won First Place in the Florida State Fair. Golly. And he will keep it in his home as a family heirloom, amongst a bazillion other remarkable objects he's made over the years, despite the fact that, IMHO, it belongs in the rotunda of our Nation's Capitol building, or the Smithsonian, or on a national tour. It's a story that belongs somewhere besides buried deep within the Internet on woodworking Blogs , I can tell you that.
He hopes to have the Gettysburg Address completed for next year's State Fair.
