Raised lead lettering

Quoted text begins.Would it be ok to make the raised letters in a mold and then set them in
shallow cut letters in the stone?
End of quote.

George, I've thought about this, and the photos of raised lead letters I posted
down in a hand-cut mould (plaster?) then fixed to the stone.

However, looking closely at the range of sizes of letters and individual
differences between them, I can't imagine that a mould would be made for each
separate letter. The anchor pegs on the back of each letter would be impossible
to align with the anchor holes.

The horizontal marks showing on the face of the stone where the letters are
missing seem to indicate that there has been some trimming of the letters after
fixing. I can't understand how the lead could be handled like this without the
letters sliding all over the place.

The method you mentioned is standard for filling sunken letters flush with
lead. Melding the lead together requires some dexterity with a timber or
Henselite bossing hammer, but over-filling and then trimming would be very
difficult on a soft stone that would show any stray tool marks.

It is going to take some persistence to solve the mystery!

Regards,

Simon