"Keith Willshaw" wrote in message
...
Thor Kuntelin wrote:
...

On the other hand Denys Stocks successfully showed that the stone
can indeed be worked using copper tools and quartz sand. The sand
lies between the tool and the stone block and does the cutting nicely.

Sand is not exactly rare in Egypt.

see Experiments in Egyptian Archaeology: Stoneworking Technology in
Ancient Egypt
Denys A. Stocks

Keith

Jewelers have been cutting stones with hard grit pressed into copper from
Egyptian Dynastic times right up to today:
http://lapidarytool.com/cart/lapidar...ps/cat_75.html
http://www.usfacetersguild.org/artic..._scoring_laps/
http://www.eeescience.utoledo.edu/fa...tones_text.htm

jsw