Ornamental turning, also called Complex turning, is executed on a lathe with attachments which convert that plain circular section to variants of outline; these range from a simple series of cuts taken at intervals around the work (so producing grooves or bumps on the surface) to non-circular movements whereby the whole of the circular shape is removed to give a completely different form.
By the beginning of the 19th century John Jacob Holtzapffel had established his workshop in London and built a reputation as a maker of high-class lathes and tools.
The Holtzapffel firm continued to make lathes until 1927 by which time they had produced a total of 2557, serially numbered, many of which were equipped for ornamental turning.
The hobby of ornamental turning declined rapidly following the invention of the motor-car which, by the end of the First World War, had become the fashionable pastime of the mechanically minded amateur, and the lathes with their complex equipment were abandoned.
However, the hobby is still kept alive by a small band of enthusiasts, notably the Society of Ornamental Turners, founded in 1948 and based in England but with members world-wide; new groups have since been established, principally in the United States, Australia and New Zealand.
A bulletin containing articles on all aspects of ornamental turning and news of the society is published half-yearly in March and September and a newsletter in July and December.