Vintage Zuni Fox Fetish of Serpentine

This precious little vintage Zuni fox fetish has the sweetest face. His name is Elwood, and he's hand carved of serpentine with inlaid turquoise eyes and a single turquoise arrowhead in his medicine bundle. 

Elwood is certain to capture your heart with his irresistible charm. Not only is he absolutely adorable, but he’s also strikingly handsome, with a perfectly balanced, angular design from tail to bundle, all the way to his ears and snout.

Significance: For the Zuni people, fetish carvings represent much more than a simple object - they're the powerful spirit of the carved animal. Different animals have different attributes. Ceremonial Zuni fetishes are used for healing and other sacred needs.

Foxes like Elwood are known for their cunning, adaptability, and their keen senses which help them avoid danger. Importantly, fetishes like Elwood are not ceremonial. They're made for us to admire, enjoy, and use as our own talisman. 

Perhaps you place Elwood on a shelf or a bedside table and smile every time you see him. Maybe you carry him with you for protection. He'd also make a special gift for a loved one. He's a fox, afterall, so he's ready and able to adapt to what you need.

He's used to hanging out with turquoise beaver fetish who is also currently for sale at Turquoise & Tufa. The two of them look great together - Elwood with his turquoise accents and beaver with his entirely turquoise body.

Provenance: Even though we don't have documentation on Elwood's original carver, we have some very interesting provenance information. He comes 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. 

Dimensions: Elwood measures 1 5/8" long x 1/2" tall and 3/8" wide.