Artistic Techniques of Decorating Eggs

Beautifully crafted and engraved Eggs of ostrich that have also amalgamation of gold and silver on the shell are kept in the lamp shades of grand mosque of Istanbul in Turkey. Similarly ostrich eggs that have flowers engraved in beautiful artistic design are kept on the prominent places of the tallest minarets of the mosque in the great mosque Djenne of Mali. Moreover, the remains of beverages cups made up of ostrich eggs have been found in the common territory of ancient Roman empire and present Italian area now called Etruscan from graves and rooms.
Decorated eggs are also kept in churches during Easter festivals according to Christian traditions. The Bori tribe in Africa and Kaima tribe of Nigeria hang ostrich eggs on their doors to be saved from ghosts. The eggs in the African culture are considered the symbol of birth so Kiama tribe keep beautifully decorated eggs in the rooms of pregnant women to give birth to healthy and beautiful baby.
According to egg decorating experts two methods are used basically to select eggs for decorating shells. One that has broken or cut shell and other is made hollow by minute holes that are closed after excluding the contents.Eggs are also decorated with small beads, seeds or jewels. In some techniques 2 or more egg shells are joined to create artistic designs. First of all the design or miniature is created that have to be crafted on shell. The basic theme or concept of all the techniques of decorating eggs is the use of colors and the surface (Base) with which egg is connected. Then the technique is taken into considered with which the decorating items are pasted on the egg shells with gum. The decoration of the egg is the best in which gum is not visible.
Base Relief is the technique in which thinnest layer of colors is pasted, this layer may be of gum, silicone or any other chemical that is dried. On this layer the artist engraves his creation.There are so many other techniques like decoupage, diorama,filigree and etched.