History of Sandcastles and Sand Sculpting

_Elsa_

Tiffi decides to check out the history of sand castles because she loves learning the history of these things. Aha! She thinks that she might have found a good article to read.

‘Every one of us who went to the beach as a kid probably brought a toy pail and shovel to play with the sand. The first thing that comes to mind is to try to build a sand castle. Well, not only kids enjoy building a sand castle or a sand sculpture; adults also like to show their skills and have fun with forming sand.

Sand sculpting is a form of entertainment in many beaches across the world. Sand artists make profit out of their work as tourists pose beside their picture-perfect creation. It’s similar to essay writing with a lot of professionals doing it for fun and for money.  Competitions are held for this type of art. But have you ever wondered how the sand castle building activity started?

Well, it turns out that no one knows or will ever know who first played with sand and decided to build something with it. There were presumptions as to who started the art of sculpting with sand. It is believed that the ancient Egyptians produced sand models of the pyramids. Some suggest that ancient men used sand sculpting as a form of communication before a formal language was used and before the cave painting became an artistic expression. Meanwhile, one Indian myth dating back to the 14th century referred to Balaram Das, a poet, who built devotional scriptures from sand. However, the first documented reference of real sand sculpture appeared only for another 500 years.

The first known profitable sand sculpture was built in Atlantic City in New Jersey during the late 19th century. Some credit Philip McCord for building the first true sand sculpture in 1897 featuring a drowned mother and her baby in macabre form. At this time, spectators and passerby walking along the boardwalk would often throw tips to the sculptors. Word spread that there was money in sand sculpture, and many had ventured into the sand building business to the point that it became a nuisance to the town fathers.

In 1944, the Great Atlantic hurricane ripped up and ruined the Boardwalk, destroying sand dunes. The city government saw it as an opportunity to ban sand sculpting.’ (Source)

“Wow Elsa lives in New Jersey,” Tiffi thanks. “I wonder how far she is from Atlantic City. I’ll have to ask her.”

Let’s continue - Modern sand sculpting

Start at the beginning - Let’s build a sandcastle!