Beautiful Badger

This Beautiful Badger was carved by Ferdinand Laiwakete from Zuni Pueblo.  It was made from dark gray marble with veins of light gray and brown inclusions and has big blue turquoise eyes.  The offering bundle has a mother of pearl arrowhead with heishi, turquoise, and coral on top. "FL" is engraved on the bottom of a back foot.  More about badgers below.

Size: 1.5" H x 3" L x 1" W

In the Zuni tradition badgers are the guardians of the south which is associated with new beginnings.  Badgers are diligent and fierce; you would not want to mess with one!  They are creatures of both the world underground where their dens are, and the world on Mother Earth’s belly where they live during the day to hunt.  And, if you have seen the video on social media, apparently they can also befriend coyotes in the wild!

Traditionally, Zuni carvings are symbolically fed cornmeal.   Each Zuni fetish comes in a box with a descriptive card and a tiny bit of corn meal to tide them over until they reach you.