A craftsman carves an icon from wax in the workshops of the Stpathy family of bronze statue makers in Swamimalai, India.The current Stpathy family is the twenty third generation of bronze casters dating back to the founding of the Chola Empire. The Stapathys had been sculptors of stone idols at the time of Rajaraja 1 (AD985-1014) but were called to Tanjore to learn bronze casting. Their methods using the 'lost wax' process remains unchanged to this day..