Breathing Life into Stone

I like sculpting very much. But i've never gotten involved with marble. I'm an admirer of this craft. I've seen it done a little, its a rough and punishing process. Hold a steel bar and hit it with a hammer so it gently chips away at a rock. I imagine the metal jarring hard against my hand with every tap of the hammer, the vibration shaking my arm and rattling my teeth. My bad aim would no doubt land that hammer directly on my knuckles frequently, the marble stained pink from little cuts. The eventual metal filing and sanding and polishing, and the permanance of every little move, oops you just knocked off his nose... Anyway above are some examples of marble made flesh so real so expressive, so alive. I humbly praise the masters.