Intarsia is a process of wood inlaying similar to marquetry. It is also the name for a similar technique using small, stones set in a marble matrix.
With the techniques of intarsia you inlay sections of either wood, ivory, bone, or mother-of-pearl into something. That something can be a solid stone matrix in floors, walls and furniture. The origin of the word is not clear. It is thought that the ‘intarsia’ is derived from the Latin ‘interserere’, which means “to insert”.
