Anyone who has walked through The Rocks in Sydney or past the old sandstone buildings in Paddington knows the warm golden glow of Hawkesbury sandstone. It is one of Australia’s most recognisable building materials, and for sculptors, it offers something rare: a stone that is forgiving enough for newcomers yet rewarding enough for experienced carvers.

I have been working with Sydney sandstone on and off for about fifteen years, and I still find it full of surprises. Here is what I have learned about this material and how to get the best out of it.

What Makes Sydney Sandstone Different

Hawkesbury sandstone is a sedimentary rock laid down roughly 200 million years ago when the Sydney Basin was a vast river plain. It is composed primarily of quartz grains held together by a silica or iron oxide cement. The iron content is what gives it that distinctive warm colour, ranging from pale cream through to deep ochre and occasionally rust red.

Compared to European limestones or Indian sandstones, Hawkesbury stone is relatively soft when freshly quarried. Stonemasons call this being “green” — the stone still has its natural moisture content and can be shaped with hand tools without too much effort. Once it dries and the silica cement hardens through exposure, the surface becomes considerably tougher.

This matters for sculptors. If you can get freshly quarried material, you will save yourself a significant amount of time and elbow grease. Dried blocks from a yard that have been sitting in the weather for a year will be noticeably harder to work.

Sourcing Material

There are still a handful of active sandstone quarries around the greater Sydney region and up into the Hunter Valley. Gosford Quarries has been operating since the 1920s and remains one of the most reliable suppliers. You can also find offcuts and salvaged blocks from demolition sites, though the quality varies enormously.

For sculpture, you want blocks that are free from major bedding planes and iron bands. Hold the stone up and look for thin dark lines running through it — these are layers where the stone will want to split. A small amount of bedding variation adds visual interest, but heavy banding means the piece may delaminate over time, especially outdoors.

When selecting a block, knock on it with a mason’s mallet. A clear, ringing tone indicates solid stone. A dull thud suggests cracks, voids, or excessive softness. This is not an exact science, but it is a useful first filter.

Tools and Approach

For roughing out, I favour pneumatic tools — a small air hammer with tungsten carbide tips makes quick work of removing bulk material. Hand tools work well too: a pitcher (a wide, flat chisel) for removing large chunks, followed by a claw chisel for intermediate shaping, then flat chisels for refining surfaces.

One thing to be aware of with Sydney sandstone is that it carves very differently along the grain versus across it. Cutting parallel to the bedding planes, the stone tends to flake away in sheets. Cutting across them, you get a more predictable, granular removal. Neither direction is inherently better — you just need to plan your approach based on the design.

For finishing, sandstone responds beautifully to rubbing with a carborundum stone or wet-and-dry sandpaper. You can achieve a surprisingly smooth surface, though I personally prefer to leave some tool marks visible. They catch the light and give the surface a sense of hand-made character that overly polished sandstone lacks.

Outdoor Durability

One of the great strengths of Hawkesbury sandstone for outdoor sculpture is its proven track record in the Australian climate. Buildings carved from this material over 150 years ago still look magnificent. The stone develops a natural patina over time, and in shaded areas will often grow a thin layer of lichen that adds to its character.

That said, sandstone is porous. In areas with high pollution or salt exposure — coastal locations, for instance — you will see faster weathering. Applying a breathable stone sealer can slow this process without trapping moisture inside the stone, which would cause more damage than the weather itself.

A Stone Worth Knowing

Sydney sandstone is not glamorous in the way that Italian marble is. It does not have the drama of granite or the translucency of alabaster. What it has instead is warmth, workability, and an honest connection to the Australian landscape. When you carve it, you are working with the same material that forms the cliffs at the Blue Mountains and the harbour foreshore. There is something grounding about that.

If you are in Sydney or the surrounding region and have not tried carving the local stone, I would encourage you to get hold of a small block and spend an afternoon with it. You might be surprised by how satisfying it is to shape something from the ground beneath your feet.

For sculptors elsewhere in Australia, your local geology will offer its own opportunities. Victorian bluestone, South Australian limestone, Western Australian granite — every region has its signature stone. But that is a conversation for another day.