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Stone Sculptures from Zimbabwe |
Stone used to create these sculptures range in value and hardness from soft soap stone to semi-precious verdite. Serpentine, the most widely used stone, falls in the middle of this range. Creating each piece is labor intensive and requires patience and great skill. Simple tools such as chisels, hammers, sand paper, and bees wax are most commonly used.
No two sculptures are exactly alike. What may look like irregularities reflects the creative approach of the individual stonecutter. It takes up to a month to create a medium-sized sculpture. Groups of artisans create most of the large-sized sculptures. |
