small sculptures

A Mayan noblewoman sits atop a base in this sculpture from Guatemala, hand-carved of cedar wood in the style of traditional Jaina-style sculptures. Jaina refers to a small island off the coast of Mexico where a collection of pre-Columbian carvings and sculptures were found. Guatemalan artisan Nicolas Chavez Sojuel emulates the Jaina style, adding cultural details to the subject, such as an enlarged cranium, scars across the cheeks, and small bulges on the left shoulder, indicative of ancient Mayan body alterations that were popular at the time.

Guatemalan artisan Nicolas Chavez Sojuel designs a sculpture to depict a Mayan midwife standing atop a base, carving it by hand of cedar wood. Small details, such as the decorations on her clothing, the jewelry she wears, and her elaborate headdress are realized with a keen eye. In ancient Mayan society, Mayan noblewomen and midwives often wore decorative headdresses in order to accommodate enlarged craniums due to body alteration practices.

By Eka, who has young children of her own, this beautiful portrait celebrates family. It conveys a mother's protective affection and her small daughter's trusting love. The sculpture is carved of native suar wood with a black finish.

This regal sculpture in smooth dark brown is the creation of West Africa's Awudu Saaed. Hand carved from rich ebony wood, the abstract sculpture depicts a tall, noble figure flanked by two smaller figures. The bodies of the three figures cross each other in elegant curving swoops.

George Obeng designed this wonderful original sculpture with world peace in mind. Carved by hand from ebony wood, the sculpture depicts two women of different races holding up a clay pot that represents the fragility of life on Earth. "By this carving, I am appealing to the world that we are not the only creatures in the world," says the artist. "Plants and trees, insects, reptiles and fishes both in the sea and rivers, birds and all mammals are interested in enjoying life in the world. The human race is just a small fraction of all creatures, so why are we not interested in making peace our focus and object in the world, to enable all creatures to enjoy life to the fullest. Anytime there is earthly destruction, we only account for human losses, forgetting that other creatures including trees may also get damaged. This carving is sounding a wake-up call to the world leaders and united nations to wake up for the human race now. Humans are full of selfishness, cruelty and greed; these can cause the world to break into pieces. All the world leaders have a responsibility in the matter. The world is as fragile as a clay pot so therefore whatever we do let's do it in peace."

Holding a small vessel in one hand and making a meditative gesture with the other, Buddha is hand-carved from crocodile wood. Indonesian artisan Wayan Rendah creates this reverent sculpture.

In celebration of Thailand's rich musical palette, Eve Naewmaung designs this fascinating sculpture. Hand-carved of acacia wood, a drummer sits with legs crossed, his instrument balanced on one knee as he plays away. This small sculpture is given a distressed, dark brown finish with painted gold-tone accents.