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This relief carving of Guanyin, the Chinese goddess of mercy, was made as a pendant for a friend. It is carved from mammoth ivory and the finding on top is gold. The flattened bottom has been carved into a seal.
This oversize skull was carved from a block of black walnut that was given to me. You might be able to make out near the top a dark stripe with a light point at the top which is dark stained wood around an old-fashioned rectangular nail embedded deep in the wood. My carbide carving bit went through the iron as if it were butter. By traditional Chinese standards this morbid subject matter would be considered inauspicious.
Carved from a tagua nut and painted. Tagua nuts are as hard as ivory and look like it when finished. They were commonly used for such things as buttons, before plastics were invented.
The top is hollowed out to make a sort of vessel.
I cut and shaped this chicken-blood stone, carved a seal on its face, and made the custom hardwood base from purpleheart. The stone sits down into the base.