Pyrography Definition

Pyrography (or wood burning): The free handed art of decorating wood or other materials with burn marks resulting from the controlled application of a heated object such as a poker.

Pyrography dates from the 17th century and the term literally means "writing with fire", from the Greek pyr (fire) and graphos (writing). The artist uses specialized modern pyrography tools, a metal implement heated in a fire, or even sunlight concentrated with a magnifying lens.

Pyrography is also popular among gourd crafters and artists, where designs are burned onto the exterior of a dried hard-shell gourd.