A few behind the scenes looks at the process of lost wax casting.
It's pretty awesome stuff. I'm all for anything where I can be messing around with molten metal and fire.
Lost wax or investment casting is a process in which you carve a design in wax or use an organic form (such as a pine cone) you then surround in a ceramic like material or "investment".
This is then fired in a kiln and the wax or organic item is burned away (or lost) inside the hardened investment, leaving a mold you can then use to cast the item.
...and... I actually sound like I know what I'm talking about;)
For a better description Google is your homeboy.