Vintage Folk Art Inuit Sedna Hand Carved Green Stone Sculpture on Carved Base
Vintage hand carved Inuit sculpture depicting Sedna, the sea spirit and mother of all marine animals in Inuit mythology. Carved from deep green stone, Sedna is depicted in her mermaid form with two long braids (seen from the back) and a tapered tail, seated on a contrasting lighter green carved stone base. The piece is attached by a bar to the base that can be removed. Created by an artist named Temela of Cape Dorset, an artist not widely documented, which is common among earlier or lesser known carvers working within local northern cooperatives. In good condition with wear consistent with age. There is a superficial split in the base (seen from the bottom of the base), but it is still structurally sound.
According to Inuit legend, Sedna was once a young woman who fell into the sea during a violent storm. As she was holding onto the edge of her father’s boat, he feared for his survival and cut off her fingers to free her grip. Her severed fingers transformed into the sea mammals that sustain Inuit communities, seals, whales, walruses, while Sedna herself descended to the ocean floor, becoming the guardian of all creatures beneath the waves. She remains both protector and provider, releasing animals to hunters only when she is respected and appeased.
Size: 10.5”H x 6.5”W x 2.9”D
Vintage Folk Art Inuit Sedna Hand Carved Green Stone Sculpture on Carved Base
Vintage hand carved Inuit sculpture depicting Sedna, the sea spirit and mother of all marine animals in Inuit mythology. Carved from deep green stone, Sedna is depicted in her mermaid form with two long braids (seen from the back) and a tapered tail, seated on a contrasting lighter green carved stone base. The piece is attached by a bar to the base that can be removed. Created by an artist named Temela of Cape Dorset, an artist not widely documented, which is common among earlier or lesser known carvers working within local northern cooperatives. In good condition with wear consistent with age. There is a superficial split in the base (seen from the bottom of the base), but it is still structurally sound.
According to Inuit legend, Sedna was once a young woman who fell into the sea during a violent storm. As she was holding onto the edge of her father’s boat, he feared for his survival and cut off her fingers to free her grip. Her severed fingers transformed into the sea mammals that sustain Inuit communities, seals, whales, walruses, while Sedna herself descended to the ocean floor, becoming the guardian of all creatures beneath the waves. She remains both protector and provider, releasing animals to hunters only when she is respected and appeased.
Size: 10.5”H x 6.5”W x 2.9”D
