Small parrot

A handmade parrot sculpture made of white and blue calcite, combined with sodalite for the color accents. The detailed beak is made of onyx, the base of rock crystal.

Animal sculptures made of minerals are a classic discipline of Chinese and South American stone carving. The combination of different stones in a single sculpture requires careful selection of color and hardness correlations.

Calcite, with a Mohs hardness of 3, is a soft carbonate mineral that is easy to work with. Sodalite provides the stronger blue color, onyx the black beak detail, and rock crystal the clear base. A four-part composition from one workshop.