Josian, stone carver
Reunion Island · 20h
Josian in a few words
In Plaine des Cafres, Josian carves the pilon by hand: the stone mortar used to crush garlic, ginger and chilli in every Reunionese kitchen. He picks his rocks one by one from the Entre-Deux river: dense blue stones he knows will last a lifetime. Blow after blow, he hollows out the heart of the stone, keeping a rhythm like music to forget the ache in his arms. A demanding craft that you have to love, and one he now wants to pass on so it lives on.
The programme
Half-day 1 — At the artisan's
Discovering the tools and the stages of the work
Half-day 2 — At the artisan's
Reading the rock and marking out the three views (top, front, bottom)
Half-day 3 — At the artisan's
Carving the top view
Half-day 4 — At the artisan's
Carving the front view
Half-day 5 — At the artisan's
Carving the bottom view and final marking
Included
- Engraving your initials and the date it was made
You leave with
- The basics of stone carving
- Your pestle and mortar, carved by hand and engraved with your initials
- The cultural guide to Reunion IslandFree
The cultural guide to Reunion Island is included free with your booking