Carved Opal and Obsidian

During the Ice ages of the Pleistocene era, herds of mammoth walked the earth as one of the most common species.  However, as species tend to do, they all died out by about 8000 BC, due to global climate change and possibly from being hunted by that most efficient of predator, homo sapiens.  Mammoth fossil remains have been found all over the planet, but in areas which have had glacial ice since the pleistocene, mammoth remains have been quite well preserved...

Bits and pieces of mammoth tusks are quite commonly found in Siberia and Alaska and have traditionally been used for tools and decoration by the native peoples.  Although the term for this material is "fossil" mammoth ivory, it is actually not fossilized in the sense of having been turned to stone, but has been preserved in it's original organic state as actual ivory by the cold.  Mammoth ivory is the only completely legal, unregulated form of ivory available, due to the fact that mammoth are long extinct and therefore no longer considered an endangered species.

Jumping ahead in time to the Holocene era, (present epoch) about 30 years ago to be exact... a clever american fellow named Lee had the great idea of bringing fossil ivory to the master ivory carvers of Bali.  The Balinese have a very old tradition of carving ivory for ceremonial purposes and for the pleasure of kings and heads of government. 
Traditionally the Balinese carved ivory with hammer and chisel, but nowadays they use hand held dremel tools, which allow them to get a great deal of detail and a high polish in their work.

Mammoth Ivory carves beautifully and as a material it is internationally desireable, but it is rather difficult to obtain, which drives the price up.  Not only is it found in quantity only in remote Artic regions which are difficult to travel to, but with mammoth being extinct there is no more being produced. 
Not to be discouraged, the Balinese began using antler, which is not only less expensive and more stable, but is always being produced, as deer, elk and moose shed their antlers every year and then grow a fine new set.

Bali Hindu culture puts a strong emphasis on art and beauty.  They discover and bring out the beauty in all kinds of different materials.  Out of many, here are a few more favored carving materials...

Another Balinese favorite of our customers are the Spirit Face pendants.  Wearable little works of art, each carving is unique!  The pendants are done in fossil ivory, antler and cowbone.

Every year since 1999, Carved Opal and Obsidian has spent a month in Bali, making friends with the artists and buying carvings directly from the guys who make them in their home based workshops.  We have watched our artist friends grow up from teenagers into adults, get married and have families of their own.  Others have grown older and retired, as Balinese carvers quit carving when they get into their 40s and their eyesight is no longer perfect.  In Balinese culture this signals the time when the children should take over the business and the older carver sits back and enjoys life in a more leisurely manner...