Wounaan Vintage White 3 Turtle Tagua Carving Panama

Here's another special carving. The artist managed to get three turtles out of this nut. The artists like to say they look at the nut and see the animals within. Then through their carving skills they release them. I have probably had this carving in my inventory for 30 years.

I have several boxes of all white carvings that I rarely get around to anymore. The other day I was looking at them and decided to start in on them.

White means the natural color of tagua. It is why tagua is often referred to as vegetable ivory or called ivory nut.

Here's an idea if you are a painter. Buy fine inks and try painting this yourself. It will give you a fine appreciation of the work the Wounaan artist do. I paint a few myself every now and then. Click for the larger images to get the best views.

Every tagua carving is a one-of-a-kind treasure.

20091969Lmm