Antler Bird, Parrot by Raymond Tsalate

An antler parrot with dark amber and turquoise inlaid eyes & a mother-of-pearl beak strapped with leather to a lapis arrowhead. This parrot was carved & delivered to Sunshine Studio's front porch by Ray Tsalate in early 2021. The parrot has opal, spiny oyster, keshi pink pearls & lapis beads in the offering bundle. Ray has incised lines to simulate feathers, then inlaid them with a pipestone and lapis putty like paint that he made from grinding up the stones. This carving conjures up the significance of a parrot to the Zuni tribe - for when the Zunis arrived to the Middle World; what we call earth - they were given a choice between two eggs. Many tribesmen chose the blue egg and were guided to their current homeland; destined to have a life full of toil with the crow as their guide - known as the Winter people. The other group chose the white egg and headed towards the south, known forever as the summer people with the parrot as their guide. So the parrot represents the tribesmen who migrated to what is believed to be near the Costa Rican / Isthmus of Panama. Artist: Raymond Tsalate (signed) Size: 2-1/2 in. long x 1 in. wide x 1-1/2 in. tall #57165