Lost-Wax Casting: How a MÖHYA Signature® 925 Silver Jewel is Born

Before it reaches your hands, a 925 silver jewel goes through a stage that almost no one sees, but which largely determines the final result: casting. It is at this moment that a design ceases to be an idea and transforms into metal.

At MÖHYA Signature®, the technique we use to give body to many of our pieces is called lost-wax casting, a centuries-old method that remains, even today, one of the most precise processes in contemporary Portuguese jewellery. In this article, we explain how it works, why it still makes sense for a designer piece, and what separates good casting from a carelessly produced piece.

What Is Lost-Wax Casting

Lost-wax casting is a jewellery technique that starts with a model sculpted in wax, with the exact design of the final jewel. This model is encased in a special plaster, forming a mould. When the plaster hardens, the assembly is heated to a high temperature, the wax melts and flows out, leaving an empty cavity with the precise shape of the piece. It is this cavity that receives the molten 925 silver, and this is why the technique is called lost-wax: the original model disappears to make way for the jewel.

From Wax to Silver: The Stages of the Process

The process has several phases, and each one requires extra attention.

• Wax modelling: the jewel's design is sculpted by hand or with a 3D printer, depending on the complexity of the piece and the level of detail required.
• Mounting and coating: the wax model is attached to a wax tree with other pieces and coated in refractory plaster, which is resistant to high temperatures.
• Wax elimination: the mould is placed in an oven, where the wax melts and drains completely, leaving the empty space ready to receive the metal.
• Casting: the 925 silver is heated to its melting point and poured into the mould, usually with the aid of a centrifuge, to ensure it fills every detail of the design.
• Demoulding and finishing: after cooling, the plaster is broken away, and the raw piece is separated, cleaned, and sent for the finishing and polishing stages.

It's a process that combines chemistry, temperature, and patience, and it doesn't forgive haste. A poorly prepared mould or a rushed casting results in pieces with bubbles, missing material, or irregular surfaces that should never leave the workshop.

Why This Technique Continues to Make Sense

You might ask if it makes sense to use such an ancient technique in a contemporary jewel. The answer lies in precision. Lost-wax casting allows for the reproduction of complex designs, irregular curves, and volumes that would be almost impossible to achieve with just a hammer and file. It's the method that makes pieces like the DUÄLIS Ring possible, with its two silver arms that separate and rejoin, a design that demands total control over the final shape.

At the same time, it remains a technique dependent on manual decisions at almost every stage: how the wax is modelled, how the metal is poured, how the piece is cleaned after it comes out of the mould. The machine helps, but it doesn't replace the judgment of the person overseeing the process from beginning to end.

Careful Casting vs. Mass Production

Not all casting is equal. In productions designed for scale, the goal is to reduce costs and time, which usually means moulds reused until they lose definition, ovens set for large batches, and little control over each individual piece. The result is jewellery with poorly defined edges, porous surfaces, or irregular thicknesses that are noticeable to the touch.

In careful casting, each batch is smaller, each mould is prepared for the specific design of the piece, and there is an individual check before the jewel proceeds to finishing. It is this difference, more than the metal itself, that separates a piece designed to last from a piece designed only to sell quickly. This demand also defined the new generation of 925 silver in Portugal, which we have already explored in the article Finishing in Jewellery: The Stage That Reveals the True Quality of a Jewel.

How to Recognise a Well-Cast Piece

Before buying a 925 silver jewel, there are simple signs that help determine if the casting was well executed.

• The surface is uniform, with no visible pores or small bubbles.
• The edges and reliefs of the design are well defined, with no flattened or incomplete parts.
• The weight of the piece is consistent with its size, with no hollow areas that shouldn't exist.
• The piece has the hallmark that guarantees the 925 silver alloy, something we have already explained in detail in the article 925 Silver Hallmarks: The Guarantee Seal Few People Know How to Read.

If the piece has natural stones, it is also worth confirming how they were set after casting, a topic we developed in the article on stone setting in 925 silver.

MÖHYA Signature®'s Commitment to Every Casting

Every piece that undergoes casting at MÖHYA Signature® follows moulds prepared for its specific design, without reuses that compromise the definition of the jewel. After casting, each piece is individually checked before proceeding to finishing and polishing, ensuring that what reaches you has the same precision as the original design.

It is this care, repeated piece by piece, that allows us to offer 925 silver jewels with details that withstand daily use, without losing definition over the years.

Find Your 925 Silver Piece

Now that you know the process behind every MÖHYA Signature® jewel, explore the 925 silver rings collection and discover designs that only lost-wax casting makes possible. If you are looking for something even more personal, visit the Create Your Piece page and start the process of designing a unique jewel, cast especially for you.