Vintage Zuni Fetishes Turtle and Tortoise By Clayton and Abby Panteah

Here are two reptilian fetishes beautifully hand carved by two different Zuni artists.

First is Shelly the red pipestone sea turtle. Shelly has a flat shell which is typical for turtle that lives in the water. She's lovingly etched with repeating symbols in the top of her shell, and she's inlaid with turquoise eyes and a single turquoise bead in the center of her back. 

As a creature that lives in the sea, she represents water which is a gift of extreme importance in the arid Southwest. Shelly floats along with the current rather than against it as she lives her long life, so she reminds us to seek ease and to "go with the flow" as we traverse life's many experiences. 

Percy is the black marble land tortoise as depicted with his domed shell. Percy is decorated with a single inlaid turquoise heartline extending directly into his tortoise heart and representing his powerful spirit breath. He was carved to life by Clayton and Abby Panteah who work in a unique clean style often with turquoise heart lines.

Together the two reptilian fetishes signify protection (bestowed by their hard shells), longevity, and journeys of discovery which happen throughout their long lives. The two should bring exceptional luck.

They were named Percy & Shelly by yours truly as a tribute to my dear box turtle who accompanied me in my Southwest travels when I was a wee tween. During her travels, Percy Shelley may have been one of the world's only box turtles to have experienced a re-enactment of the gunfight at The O.K. Corral or have entered numerous Route 66 restaurants from the safety of her temporary tote bag home. Over her lifetime, she brought me numerous wonderful experiences. Her namesake fetishes will certainly do the same.

Dimensions: Shelly is 1 1/2" long x 1" wide and 1/4" high. She's signed on her tummy. Percy is 1 1/4" long x 3/4" wide and 5/8" tall. He's signed on his tummy.

Provenance: Percy & Shelly are being sold as a pair because their joint turtle and tortoise medicine is strong, and they've actually sat side by side for many years. They come from the collection of a beautiful woman who grew up in Germany during World War II. Post war, she moved to the United States and became a model in New York City. She eventually married, left her modeling career, and moved to El Paso with her husband. In El Paso, she first experienced the charm of Native American art and jewelry. 

Many years later, she attended her first of several celebrated Native American art field trips hosted by Martha Struever. During this time, she expanded her collection of Native American art and jewelry. Her collection wasn't vast, but it was extremely meaningful to her.

After a long and full life, this dear woman recently passed away. She knew that her collection which she lovingly called her "treasures" was to be handled by Turquoise & Tufa, and she expressed her wishes that these dear fetishes would bring as much joy to us as they did to her.